After the Duel
by Chocolate369
Summary: A set of one-shots following the Ceremonial Duel revolving around the idea that Atem stays with Yugi and his friends after the battle. "Mom, Dad, Meet the Pharaoh" is a sort of prequel.
1. After the Battle

A set of one-shots revolving around the idea that Atem stays with Yugi after the Ceremonial Duel. I intended to have this up months ago, but for some reason I didn't. I don't know when the next one will come up, could be tomorrow, could be a few days. Please enjoy.

Disclaimer: I don't own Yugioh

Chapter 1

The group in the ancient shrine stared in shock as the Pharaoh—no, Atem's—Life Points dropped to zero as the bright light from Yugi's attacked dimmed and vanished in the dimly lit chamber. The sight was still unbelievable; Atem almost never lost—only twice in recent memory until now. And now it was over, and no knew what came next.

Yugi trembled slightly. He knew he'd needed to defeat Atem in order to free him from the Puzzle, but Ishizu and Marik couldn't tell them what would happen next. "It is unknown Yugi," Ishizu had said. "All we know is that the Pharaoh must be defeated in order to be freed. What happens to him afterward is a mystery to both us and our ancestors." What would happen now? Would Atem move on to the afterlife? Would his soul just disappear, without anything to anchor him to this world?

Atem gently placed a hand on Yugi's shoulders and squeezed, assuring him that no matter what, the former king would be fine. He didn't want Yugi to worry, as it would only cause them both unnecessary grief. The Pharaoh released him and faced the doors, proclaiming his name, steeling himself for whatever came next as the eye glowed, enveloping the entire room with a blinding white light. Yugi couldn't see what was happening, and neither could anyone else, judging from the confused shouting he heard from his friends.

Suddenly, after what seemed like forever and a second at the same time, the light died down and the occupants could see again. Some of them.

"Man, that was intense," said Tristan.

"You're telling me," replied Joey, rubbing his eyes. "I'm gonna be seeing spots for the next ten years."

"Wait a second guys," said Yugi, staring. The Pharaoh still stood before them, facing the eye, looking the same as he did before. "Pharaoh—I mean, Atem?" he asked, hope rising wildly in his heart. "What…"

Atem turned and smiled at Yugi. "It appears I'm staying in this world for a while."

The group stared, almost afraid to hope. "You mean…"

Atem nodded.

Ishizu cleared her throat. "The decision has been made. The Pharaoh will remain with you in this time." She smiled.

"Really?" asked Joey, a huge smile overtaking his face. "Man this is awesome!"

Yugi laughed in delight and raced to Atem, enveloping him in a hug that threatened to cut off the Pharaoh's air supply. Joey, Tristan, Tea, and Duke followed two seconds behind him, hugging him from all sides, laughing all the while; Joey and Tristan taking turns to rub their knuckles across Atem's head. Mokuba stood back about two feet, excited for the Pharaoh, but not wanting to interrupt the moment. Marik, Ishizu, and Odion grinned at the sheer happiness of the group of friends and of the Pharaoh himself. Kaiba hung back, but no could say there wasn't a pleased smirk on his face.

"Wait a sec," exclaimed Mokuba as a question popped into his head. "Is he going to stay like this…" he gestured towards Atem. "Or is it going to be like before?" Until the duel, he'd never seen Yugi or the Pharaoh separate before. He'd known since Battle City (despite how Seto would deny it) and it had become more apparent during the Orichalcos incident when Yugi's soul was taken, but it had never hit home until the Eye of Wjdat had literally separated the two look-a-likes into separate bodies.

"He will be in his own body," replied Ishizu assuringly. "The battle ritual ensured that Atem is no longer bound to the Millennium Puzzle."

"Even cooler!" exclaimed Tristan. "Now he can hang out with us around town, he can go to school with us…"

"Hold on!" Duke interrupted. "How do you plan on explaining that to people? He and Yugi look almost exactly alike."

Yugi thought about it for a few seconds, then snapped his fingers. "We'll just say Atem's my twin brother, and he's been living abroad for most of his life with some friends of our family, but now he's back."

"Of course," Solomon agreed. "It'll take awhile to get used to, but that's a perfect idea."

Yugi beamed at his grandpa's easy acceptance, followed by Atem's surprised, then grateful smile.

"But Atem doesn't have a birth certificate or anything like that," said Duke. At everyone's glare, he hastily explained. "I'm not shooting down the idea guys! I'm as happy as you are that he's sticking around, and I think it's a great idea! I'm just saying!"

_Oh man,_ Yugi thought. Duke was right. How were they going to fix that one? Nowadays, people needed a birth certificate and a social security number to do practically everything but breathe. Everyone else's expressions told him they realized the same thing. What the heck were they supposed to do?

"Relax," said Kaiba, "I'll take care of everything."

"You will?" Yugi asked as everyone stared. Even Atem looked surprised at the unexpected save.

Joey wore suspicion. "Am I losing my mind here? First Kaiba admits he was wrong, then offers to help us. Did you get possessed by something?"

Kaiba glared. "No Wheeler, I'm perfectly fine." He smirked. "Though I do wonder how you can lose your mind when you hardly even have one to begin with." He ignored Joey's outraged spluttering and turned his attention back to Yugi and Atem. "And besides, I owe you. Yugi helped me escape from Gozaburo, and Atem saved me and Mokuba when Noah turned us into statues. I don't like owing people favors. Besides," he added, "if you couldn't stay in Japan, I'd have to travel all the way to Egypt to challenge you to rematch."

"Which one?" asked Joey. "Yugi or Atem?"

Kaiba rolled his eyes. "Yugi already lives in Japan, Wheeler! Or do you not know which country you live in?" Ignoring Joey and Tristan's scuffle as the latter tried to hold the former back, he regarded the two spikey haired duelists. "You two are both real duelists. When I thought there was just one of you, I thought you were my only worthwhile adversary. But even though there are two of you, I saw from this duel that both of you are worthy opponents, and it'll be convenient to have you both close by."

"Fair enough," replied Atem, shrugging. Inwardly, he was grateful to Kaiba.

"Yeah," Yugi agreed. "Thanks Kaiba!"

Kaiba grunted and strode toward the exit while Joey struggled to throw Tristan and Duke off of him so he could pound Kaiba. Yugi chuckled, but before the scuffle could escalate, the ground suddenly began to shake.

"What's happening?" asked Mokuba as everyone tried frantically to keep their balance.

Only Atem, Ishizu, and Odion remained unmoved. "The Millennium Items." Ishizu gestured toward the Millennium Stone containing the Millennium Items as it plunged down a dark and seemingly bottomless shaft, burying the items and their magic for the rest of eternity. The shaking stopped, but nobody wanted to remain in an underground chamber that could possibly collapse on them, and no time was wasted in exiting.

* * *

><p>Hours later, when stars decorated the Egyptian sky, Yugi and Atem sat together in the guest bedroom they were sharing at the Ishtar's house, which kind of reminded Yugi of a small hotel room with a closet, a single queen-sized bed that he and Atem were sharing, and a nightstand on both sides. The bathroom was down the hall. At the moment, the house was mostly quiet, punctuated occasionally with Joey and Tristan's snores echoing from Marik's room next door. Marik was sharing with Odion and Ishizu had offered to share with Tea while Duke took the couch in the downstairs living room.<p>

After the group had boarded the ship, Kaiba told Atem and Yugi that Atem at least needed to stay in Egypt for a couple weeks in order for Kaiba to obtain the necessary documents. He'd send the birth certificate to Yugi's house and send a passport to Egypt with Express Mail when he got it. Until then, Atem had to wait.

Atem didn't mind, and when everyone else found out, most of them volunteered to stay with him. Bakura wanted to return home, Solomon needed to run the store, Kaiba refused to allow Mokuba to remain behind, but everyone else decided to stay, and the Ishtar's had graciously offered their home as a place to stay and volunteered to take them to all the famous sites. After being assured it was no trouble, they all accepted.

Joey was eager to see the Sphinx and find out what happened to its nose while Tristan wanted to explore a pyramid. Tea wanted to tour Cairo. Marik had promised them they'd get to see all that and more. Neither Duke nor Yugi particularly cared where they went; they just wanted to see the sites. Atem wanted to visit a museum and learn all he could about how his country had changed during his imprisonment in the Puzzle.

Unfortunately, their boat had docked late in the afternoon, too late to see anything. So the people remaining in Egypt returned to the Ishtar's home with them and settled down for the evening, occupying themselves with various magazines, TV, videogames, and a yo-yo competition before heading to bed.

Yugi smiled. While Joey and Tristan were goofing off with yo-yos, Atem had disappeared, and Yugi'd found him in the Ishtars' basement library with a huge pile of books next to him. Apparently, he'd hadn't wanted to wait until the next morning to learn his Egyptian history. Unfortunately, Joey and Tristan had dragged both of them back upstairs to judge a yo-yo competition.

Eventually, everyone had drifted off to bed, but Yugi noticed Atem staring out the window in his dark blue pajamas he'd picked up last minute from a nearby clothes store, wearing his "deep-in-thought" look.

"Is something wrong?" he asked.

"Hmm?" Atem started slightly, having thought Yugi already asleep. No Yugi, I'm fine. I'm just thinking about everything."

"Yeah. It's a lot to take in, I know."

"Yes," Atem said. "Are you sure you're okay with this, Yugi? Calling me your brother?" he asked, an uncertain expression on his face.

"Of course!" said Yugi. Why would Atem doubt that?

"It's just that I seem to attract trouble for you. And the point of that duel was to show that we could live independently of each other."

"I know that. And just because we're staying together, it doesn't mean we can't live without each other. We can. We just choose to stay together. It's better because it's our choice now." Yugi grinned. "So don't get all depressed about this. We're supposed to be happy about it."

"Don't worry, I am," Atem reassured him. "I just wanted to make sure _you_ were."

"Well, don't worry. I am."

The two sat together quietly for a while. "Was there something else you were thinking about?" asked Yugi.

Atem nodded. "You remember that bright light down in the shrine after the duel?"

"How could I not? Joey complained about it half the return trip."

Atem chuckled. "Well, in that light, I saw my friends and family from my previous life."

Yugi gaped, and his face fell. "You must miss them."

"Yes, I do." Atem glanced downward for a second before meeting Yugi's eyes again. "But I know I will meet them again one day. They spoke to me, told me to live the rest of my life well." He smiled. "They also told me to make sure, when the time comes, to bring all of you to their place in the afterlife so everyone can meet. They especially want to meet you, Yugi."

"Really?" Yugi asked.

Atem nodded. "They also told me to tell you to look after me."

"Seriously? I always thought you were the one who looked after _me_."

Atem chuckled fondly. "After Battle City, it seemed like _you_ were the one rushing to _my_ rescue. In any case, my safety was always their first priority when they were alive. Do you expect them to change that?"

"I suppose not."

A few moments later, the clock struck eleven. "Whoa!" Yugi exclaimed. "We'd better get to bed." Atem agreed and shut off the lights. "Good night, Atem."

"Good night, little brother."

"So I'm the younger one?"

"I told Kaiba I wanted to be the older one. Besides, I _am_ older than you."

"Yeah, I know. Maybe we should pick up a cane for you tomorrow." Yugi teased.

Atem flinched in indignation. "Hey!" He seized Yugi around the chest, and rubbed his knuckles across the top Yugi's head.

"Hey, stop!" Yugi whispered loudly, trying not to laugh too loud. "All right, I give! You win!"

Atem stopped and released him, chuckling.

Yugi laughed softly. It seemed Atem was adjusting to the modern world just fine.

* * *

><p>Joey yawned as he stepped into the kitchen to see breakfast already on the table and the majority of the occupants already eating. "Sweet, I'm starving!" he exclaimed, helping himself to pile of toast.<p>

"When are you not?" asked Tea.

"Hey!"

"All right guys, calm down," said Yugi as he scooped the last of his cereal into his mouth. It had been a pretty exhausting day before, what with the duel to determine the Pharaoh's fate, so he wasn't really surprised that most of them had slept this late.

"Hey, where the Pharaoh—I mean, where's Atem?" asked Tristan a few minutes later.

"I think he's still asleep. I'll get him," replied Yugi as he climbed the stairs to the guest room. Sure enough, Atem was still sleeping. "Hey, Atem. It's morning, time to get up." Atem stirred slightly, but didn't wake up. "Come on," said Yugi, shaking him gently.

Atem groaned and cracked open one eye. "Not now Yugi."

"Come on Atem, don't tell me you want to sleep when Marik and Ishizu planned to show us around Cairo."

"Yugi, I haven't technically slept at all in the last five thousand years. I reserve the right to sleep in for the rest of my life," Atem grumbled as he pulled the covers over his face.

Yugi gaped. But before he could say anything, Joey and Tristan burst into the room.

"Yo, Atem, you up yet? Come on, we wanna leave in an hour, and I wanna see the Sphinx," said Joey.

Atem groaned. But he knew he wouldn't be getting asleep, so he reluctantly peeled himself off the bed and grabbed his clothes.

* * *

><p>The group strode back into the apartment that night, laden down with bags of souvenirs and cheap tourist junk—T-shirts, trinkets, and even cartouches—bought at several points throughout the morning shopping trip, laughing at Joey and Tristan for getting lost in the Great Pyramid of Giza that afternoon. Tomorrow, Ishizu planned to take them to the Al-Azhar Park.<p>

Yugi and Atem were relieved to be back. Yugi needed to call his parents and Atem wanted to lie down. Marik and Odion decided to take a bike ride to the market. So while Joey and Tristan bickered with Duke and Tea, and Ishizu prepared dinner, Yugi and Atem climbed to their room.

Atem dropped his single shopping bag on the floor and practically collapsed on the bed. Yugi glanced at him in concern while dialing his dad's number.

"Hello?" Hidekazu Muto answered, sounding tired.

"Hey Dad, it's Yugi."

The voice cheered up considerably. "Yugi, it's great to hear from you! How are you?"

"I'm great."

"Good. And the Pharaoh?"

"Atem's fine too."

"Atem?" Hidekazu asked in confusion.

"You know how I phoned you and Mom last week that I was going to Egypt with my friends to help the Pharaoh find his memories?"

"Yeah. Wait, does that mean…" Hidekazu asked, catching on in excitement.

"Yep, it worked." Yugi answered triumphantly. "We got sucked into yet another crazy adventure." He laughed. "But we managed to save the world again and the Pharaoh's got his memories back. Atem's his real name."

"Wow! That's awesome! I'm glad for him; it must be a relief."

"It is. And he's got his own body now."

Yugi wondered for a second if his dad was choking.

"No way!" Hidekazu exclaimed. "Really?"

"Yeah." Yugi paused, realizing his mistake. "I probably should have asked you first, but after it happened, my friends and I kind of decided that we should call Atem my older brother and have him live with us. Kaiba's taking care of the birth certificate and everything else, but I completely forgot to talk to you guys." Yugi noticed Atem listening in, looking slightly anxious. "I hope that's okay…"

"Of course it is Yugi," came the voice of Momose Muto.

"Mom?" Yugi exclaimed "How long have you been listening?"

She chuckled. "Since your father realized it was you calling. And yes, it's all right with us, if it's okay with Atem."

"Yeah, it is," Yugi said, smiling at Atem, who grinned back. As he laid back down, Yugi thought he saw a small frown cross Atem's face, only to disappear in the next second. Yugi wondered if he was imagining things as he returned to the conversation.

"Then it's settled. We'll see you two when you get back."

"Right. We'll have to stay here for a couple weeks until Kaiba can get the papers."

"That's fine," said Hidekazu. "It means we'll both be home when you get back."

"Both of you?" asked Yugi.

Both Yugi and Atem could see Hidekazu's smile over the phone. "You know how I've been applying for a position in Domino so I could actually be home more than once a year?"

"Yeah," Yugi said eagerly, catching on.

"Well, I got it!"

"You did? That's awesome!" Yugi cheered.

"Give him my congratulations," said Atem.

"Right," said Yugi. "Atem say congratulations too."

"Thanks. I guess we'll see both you and Atem in a few weeks. We want to hear everything about this last adventure."

"You got it. Bye Mom. Bye Dad."

"Bye Yugi. Bye Atem."

Yugi hung up. "I'm glad Dad's going to be home more often now."

"He needs to be now that there's two of you," Joey snickered from the doorway. Tristan and Tea were right behind him.

Atem rolled his eyes. "Very funny, Joey." He groaned as he lay back down.

"Are you okay, Atem?" asked Tea, narrowing her eyes in concern. "It seems like you've been tired all day, and you've been a bit grouchy." She frowned. He hadn't been entirely enthusiastic while shopping even though he'd tried to hide it.

"Yeah," Yugi agreed. He quickly laid his wrist on Atem's forehead. "I don't feel a fever…"

"I'm fine Yugi. Don't worry." He glanced down. "I'm sorry if I seemed that way Tea. You're right; I have been exhausted ever since I woke up. I talked to Ishizu this morning, and she think it's because my spirit is adapting to having a body of its own after being trapped in the puzzle for so long. I just need some time to adjust; the exhaustion should go away in a few days."

"Oh, okay," Yugi replied, wiping his forehead. "That's a relief."

Atem smiled. "I'm sorry if I was short-tempered this morning."

"Don't worry about it," assured Yugi. "Looking back, it's actually more funny than anything." He closed his eyes and smiled.

"What happened?" asked Tristan. As Yugi told them what Atem had said that morning, Joey and Tristan doubled over in laughter. "Dude, I am so using that for blackmail later," said Tristan, smirks adorning both his and Joey's faces.

Atem rolled his eyes in fond exasperation. He was still too tired to do anything else. Thankfully, Joey and Tristan left him alone. Tea left the room after telling Atem to rest, promising to wake him up for dinner. Atem drifted off, aware of Yugi sitting next to him and his friends downstairs, content and safe after their latest adventure. For now, and hopefully for a long time, everything was peaceful.

* * *

><p>What do you think? Please review?<p> 


	2. Returning Home

Okay, first I have to say that I am _so_ sorry that I didn't get this up sooner! I meant to have it up last Sunday, but I got caught up in reading some new fanfics and then the time just got away from me. And I don't plan on updating during the school week because I get busy with assignments. I know, getting caught up in reading isn't an excuse.

This chapter isn't as great as I would probably like it to be, but I decided I wanted to get it up today, and if you guys see anything I can improve on or think I need to change something, feel free to tell me. I can always edit.

Lastly, thanks for the reviews for the first chapter! I really appreciate it, and I hope you like this one.

Disclaimer: I don't own Yugioh

Chapter 2

"You guys take care!" Duke waved as the others headed towards the main area to find their luggage.

"You too, Duke!" Tea waved as she shouldered her purse.

"Smell you later Devlin!" Joey called as he spotted his bag and wrestled with his bag, trying to pull it out and falling flat on his back.

"Real smooth, tough guy." Tristan smirked at him.

"Oh, like any of you guys could do it any better."

"Watch me," said Tristan as he tugged on his bag, giving it one final yank before he landed flat on his back as well.

"Who's laughing now, huh?" Joey snickered.

"You boys." Tea shook her head in exasperation.

"Hey, when your bags are buried, it's tough pulling them out!" Joey protested.

"Oh really," she asked, gesturing to Yugi and Atem, who pulled their bags out from the bottom of another pile without even swinging. She smirked.

"Not. A. Word." Tristan warned.

Tea just smiled as she, Yugi, Atem, Joey, and Tristan stepped out of the bustling airport into the bright cloudless sky and fresh air of Domino, ignoring the stares people gave Yugi and Atem. Kaiba had finally mailed Atem's passport to him two days ago, enclosing a note to Yugi warning him to expect a duel soon. Yugi had just smiled and shook his head. Atem couldn't say he was surprised. Some people just never changed.

After saying farewell to the Ishtar's, the group had caught a return flight to Domino, everyone reminiscing about the fun time they'd had. After Atem's spirit had adjusted to having its own physical body, he'd jumped into the museums and national monuments with as much enthusiasm as the rest of them, telling them so much about the Valley of the Kings that the tour guide had gotten annoyed and asked Atem if _he'd_ like to lead the group instead, much to everyone's amusement.

The friends split up at the airport with Duke staying behind to catch a connecting flight to California, promising to return to their neighborhood as soon as possible, planning on organizing a Dungeon Dice tournament and maybe challenging Yugi and Atem to rematch.

Tristan raced toward the sidewalk whistling for a taxi with the others hot on his heels. "We'll stop by the game shop in couple days to check out how you guys are holding up," he promised Yugi and Atem as he squeezed in with Joey and Tea.

"See you then," said Yugi as Atem waved down a taxi.

"Where to, boys?" asked the driver. He glanced at the rearview mirror and did a double take. "What the—"

Yugi laughed while Atem looked decidedly nonplussed. "Kame Game Shop," Atem supplied.

The whole way home, the driver couldn't quit stealing glances at his mirror. He'd obviously heard of Yugi as the King of Games, but now he was seeing what he thought were two Yugi's. At least it didn't affect his driving, Atem thought. He supposed he should start expecting that reaction for a while until people got used to the idea that Yugi apparently had a twin brother.

Yugi started bouncing in his seat as they approached the game shop. He was eager to see his dad again, since he'd seen so little of him the last couple years. What confused Atem was that Yugi kept sneaking glances at him and looking away when Atem looked back at him. Then Atem noticed Yugi's right thumb twitching. Yugi only did that when he was trying to hide something from someone nearby.

"Yugi, are you planning something?"

Yugi jumped and blushed. "What? No!" Atem raised his eyebrows. "_Honest_, I'm not." Yugi repeated.

Atem studied his friend. Yugi had said that a little too quickly. But he didn't seem to be lying.

"Is someone else planning something?"

Yugi blushed.

"They are, aren't they?" Atem smirked. He knew he was right. Even without the mind link, Yugi was terrible at keeping secrets from him.

Yugi sighed in defeat. "Just wait until we get home, Atem." He smiled and refused to say another word on the subject.

Atem didn't have much choice. Not that he minded surprises, just that when Yugi planned them for him, he ended up in awkward situations.

The taxi finally pulled up to the game shop, and Atem and Yugi hauled their bags out of the trunk of the cab. Yugi sighed, relieved to be home, and raced inside. Atem hung back to pay the driver before following.

The delicious smell of macaroni and lasagna assaulted his nostrils the moment he stepped through the doorway and his mouth watered. Yugi was in the midst of hugging Momose when they noticed him.

"Welcome home, Atem!" Solomon greeted, placing a hand on Atem's shoulder. Hidekazu and Momose grinned awkwardly. They weren't quite comfortable enough with hugging him yet, and neither was he. They'd gotten along fine the one time Atem had met them after the KC Grand Championship, but that had been one meeting—now they had to get used to seeing each other every day. There was still so much Atem didn't know about them, and they still knew little about him.

Even so, the "Welcome home" had filled his heart with appreciation—and a slight pang—for the chance he was getting to live this life just the same.

"Come upstairs, Atem. We want to show you something," said Momose, gesturing for him and Yugi to follow her and Hidekazu up the stairs.

At the top, she paused. "I hope you don't mind, but since our house is rather small, you and Yugi will have to share the room." She opened the door.

It was Yugi's room, almost exactly as Atem remembered it. Only now there were two beds on different sides of the room, along with two nightstands, small, but that didn't matter. What mattered was the fact that it was there.

"You don't mind sharing a room with Yugi, do you? Yugi already told us it was okay with him."

"No, it's fine." Atem knew he should say more, but he didn't know what else to say. He was overwhelmed that they'd put all this together for him. Until about two months ago, he'd been completely unknown to them, and now, they were making room for him, accepting him as a part of their family. He couldn't find the words to express his thanks.

Hidekazu and Momose seemed to understand anyway, because they simply smiled and left Yugi and Atem alone to unpack.

"What do you think?" Yugi asked as they started unpacking.

"This was the surprise, wasn't it?" replied Atem, smirking.

"Yeah, it was." Yugi grinned. "Back in Egypt, I'd wait for you to fall asleep, then talk about it with my parents. I wasn't sure at first if it would be ready by the time we got home, but luckily it was." He frowned as Atem unpacked his few belongings and easily found a spot for them. "Man, we're going to need to take you shopping to get some of the basic necessities."

"What do you mean?"

"I may not be a shopping fanatic like Tea," said Yugi, "but even I know that you need more than one set of clothes and pajamas."

Atem chuckled. "Point taken." He waited until Yugi finished unpacking his bag. "Let's go, dinner's likely ready."

"Hungry?" asked Yugi.

"I didn't eat much on the flight here."

"Yeah, I guess. The food on the airplane wasn't the best…"

"Yugi, that airplane food tasted like cardboard."

Yugi burst out laughing. "True," he replied, catching his breath. "Very true."

Dinner was delicious, centered around the trip to Egypt, mostly on what happened after the Ceremonial duel, Yugi and Atem deciding to save the stuff from before for tomorrow. Yugi described the pyramids in great detail and spoke warmly of the Ishtar's while Atem described Joey and Tristan's misadventures when they got lost inside. Yugi showed Hidekazu and Momose his and Atem's cartouches as they finished eating, prompting Solomon to drag his out.

Everyone groaned. Solomon had told the story of how he acquired it from a master craftsman many times, and the story was getting old. Even for Yugi. Everyone knew he was embellishing it anyway.

The cartouche itself was old, worn and faded, but still legible. "It's one of my favorite souvenirs, and I journeyed through a raging sandstorm to get it…"

"Come on Dad," said Hidekazu. "You walked across the block to get it."

Solomon shook his head. "Come on yourself, son. Let an old man tell a story about one of his favorite possessions. I paid good money for this."

"They made a mistake," said Atem, fingering the cartouche.

"Hmmm?" asked Solomon, eyes widening.

"One of the symbols is wrong," Atem replied, handing it back.

"What!" Solomon cried. "How could they? Now I have to go back to Egypt and get a new one. I can't believe this!"

As Solomon ranted at the inconsiderate and careless tourist trap employees, Yugi eyed Atem's growing smirk as he watched the scene. "You're pulling his leg, aren't you Atem?"

"What?" exclaimed Solomon, freezing in place.

Atem groaned in mock hurt. "Yugi, must you always spoil my fun?"

"Teasing Joey and Tristan with made up mummy curses at that one museum was hardly necessary." Yugi reprimanded, though he struggled to contain his laughter.

"Even you thought it was funny." Atem pouted.

"Hold it!" Solomon ordered, suspicion crossing his face. "_Atem._"

The former Pharaoh chuckled. "I was joking. None of the symbols are wrong." He smirked.

Solomon gaped, then glared as Hidekazu and Momose burst out laughing. "Oh, very funny Atem!"

"Actually, it was," said Hidekazu, struggling to control his laughter.

"Hmph. Just for that, young man." Solomon pointed at Atem. "You get to take care of the dishes tonight."

Atem just continued snickering as he headed towards the sink and started scrubbing. It had been worth it to see the older man's face. Momose came over and offered to show him how, but Yugi explained that Atem had occasionally taken over and handled Yugi's chores when the younger boy was tired from a long day.

After Atem finished the dishes, Yugi dragged him into the shop area. "Grandpa told me to go over the basics of taking care of the shop with you tonight. Just how to take inventory, clean up the stock after everyone leaves, and how to work the cash register. I'm assuming you know how to make change and to include taxes."

Atem nodded.

Yugi grinned. "You'd better pay attention, because something tells me Grandpa's going to stick you with a lot of this tomorrow."

"I didn't offend him too badly, did I?" Atem frowned in worry.

Yugi laughed. "No, you didn't offend him. It just bites his pride that you fooled him that easily. Trust me, in a few days, he'll look back on this and laugh. If anything, this means you're becoming a part of the family. We like teasing each other. And you're included now."

Atem shifted on his feet, a conflicted expression passing over his face before he covered it with a smile. "I'm glad to hear it." Yugi frowned. That smile seemed a little forced. Was Atem okay?

"So, what all do I need to know?" Atem asked, changing the subject. Yugi decided to ask Atem later when they were alone.

Yugi spent all of the next few hours instructing Atem on how to run the shop in case Solomon needed to take care of errands and he ended up alone in the store. It was mostly easy stuff, because Solomon handled most of the orders and shipping dates of the games he purchased. Yugi and Atem wouldn't learn more about that until they were eighteen. Yugi showed him where find the spray and paper towels for cleaning off the displays and how the organization system worked.

After finishing in the shop, Yugi dragged Atem to the basement and showed him how to work the washer and dryer and how to organize clothes, because everybody did laundry in the Muto household. He also told Atem where to find the broom, duster, mop, and vacuum cleaner.

"Don't worry, I'll be here with you tomorrow in case you have any problems." He chuckled. "It's kind of weird, imagining a former Pharaoh here helping run a game shop."

Atem nodded. "It is strange," he agreed, "but it's not a bad thing."

"I know. It's actually pretty cool."

* * *

><p>So, what do you think? Please review.<p> 


	3. Hanging Out

All right, here's the third chapter. I edited this a bit just today, so I hope it's okay. I hope everyone likes it.

Disclaimer: I don't own Yugioh

* * *

><p>Chapter 3<p>

Summer flew by for Yugi and Atem, each day filled with new experiences for Atem. Momose dragged him to the mall two days after he and Yugi arrived home from Egypt in order to shop for different clothes and to pick up several sets of school uniforms. Yugi came along to get more in preparation for a growth spurt he was sure he'd hit eventually and could hardly stop laughing at Atem's shocked face when the former Pharaoh realized what he was in for. Momose probably made him buy enough clothes to last him a month, in addition to the uniforms.

Luckily, she let him pick his own styles, a mix of leather, along with t-shirts, jeans, dress clothes, sweatshirts, shorts, gym clothes, and swimwear. They wouldn't pick up winter gear or fall clothes until it the weather got colder. He also needed shoes: boots, sneakers, sandals, and dress shoes.

"Do I really need this many clothes Yugi?" Atem asked, a slight note of fear in his voice.

Yugi shrugged, secretly laughing at the look on his older brother's face. "I know you need at least one set of all these things. But Mom just likes to make sure we're prepared."

"Prepared for what?"

Yugi just chuckled at the Pharaoh's confusion. "Just hang in there. We'll make it."

"We're not done?" Atem asked, a look of compounding disbelief falling on his face.

"Not even close."

The shopping continued for another two hours, to Atem's disbelief. After the clothes shopping was done, they stopped at a department store to pick up basic bathroom necessities, notebooks and pencils for school, and a calculator, along with suitcases and a backpack.

"She likes to shop almost as much as Tea does," Atem commented when they got back home, rubbing his sore arms. He didn't know shopping bags could get so heavy. Not to mention all the beauty products Momose had picked up for herself, saying she needed to restock while she still could. Then she'd had the boys hold the bags while she took a few minutes to search for her favorite lotion scent—a few minutes extending to half an hour. Atem personally thought that the bags had done a much better job of taking his arms off than Arcana's saw blades his feet.

"Yeah, she does. Maybe more than Tea," Yugi agreed, collapsing on his bed. It had taken every ounce of willpower he possessed earlier not to collapse and drop the bags in the parking lot. "Good luck with finding a place for all of that," he said, glancing at the piles of bags at Atem's feet.

"You're not going to help."

"Nope." Yugi grinned and raced for the door in a bolt of energy that left Atem staring in disbelief.

He grumbled as he emptied the first bag and prepped himself for the war with his dresser. This could take a while, he thought. He would also need to find a spot in the room for the Egyptian knickknacks and games he'd picked up before returning to Japan. "This should be fun."

"It'll have to wait. We're not done yet." Momose stepped into the room.

"More?" Atem froze, almost ready to race down to the shop and ask Solomon if he needed inventory done. Desperate times called for desperate measures.

"Oh don't worry Atem." Momose chuckled. "The shopping part's done. But we still need to get you added to our bank accounts and insurance plans. I also wanted to stop by the library so you get a library card. And we need to arrange a day for you to take your test for a driver's license. I'm assuming you know how to drive."

Breathing out a sigh of relief that he wouldn't be going back to the mall, he nodded. "Yes, when Yugi was learning to drive, I studied the rules alongside him. When he practiced the actual driving, he usually let me take over for a while so I could get experience."

"Good," Momose replied.

* * *

><p>A few weeks later, they met up with their friends at the city for day of fun, with their first stop being the arcade, where Joey and Tristan challenged Atem to just about every game in the room: air hockey, pool, fighting games, shooting games, even Mario and Luigi along with the claw games where players tried to snag a prize with the claw, only to get royally trounced each time.<p>

"How the heck do you do that?" asked Joey, his face falling as he ate Atem's dust for the tenth time on the Nascar racing game. The Pharaoh had crossed the finish line while Joey still had a lap and a half to go.

"You just stink at this game," Tristsan said jokingly.

Joey glared and raised his fists. "What didja say tough guy?"

Atem's arms shot out and seized Joey wrists before the other could swing. "Calm down Joey, you don't stink. Yugi and I just forgot to mention that both of us have played all these games plenty of times."

"Say what? But there's only been two of you for about a month! And two weeks of that were in Egypt," Joey protested.

"After Duelist Kingdom, I came over here to play a lot when you guys were busy," said Yugi. "And we took turns playing the games." He laughed. "See that sign over the pinball machine?"

Joey, Tristan, and Tea glanced over at the bright yellow sign that hung above the machine, saying _100 Free Tokens To Whoever Can Top The High Score_. Kids of various ages swarmed the machine, fighting for a spot. "What about it?" asked Tristan.

Yugi grinned. "Take a guess who holds the high score right now."

Tea shrugged and leaned forward to get a closer look at the scores displayed on the machine. "The name at the top says 'YAM,'" she said as she rejoined them. Her eyes widened. "As in Yami…"

"No way! You?" Joey exclaimed as he spun towards Atem.

Atem smirked.

"Geez! Is there any game you aren't a pro at?"

Atem rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "Give me a few days to think about that and get back to you."

Joey groaned as Yugi and Atem laughed.

As they left the arcade and headed for the shopping district, Tristan decided now was as good a time as any to ask. "So, how are you two adjusting to this?" He waved his arm and gestured to Atem. "It's been a month since it happened."

"Pretty good actually," Yugi replied. "He's gotten used to handling the game shop. Even during the rush hour."

"It wasn't as difficult as I thought," Atem replied, shrugging. "It's just a matter of keeping everyone's requests in order and balancing who you pay attention to."

"Whatever." Joey shrugged it off. He wanted to know how one of little buddies was adjusting to everything else. "What about home life. How are you and the folks getting along?"

"Grandpa and I get along great." Atem grinned. Initially a little awkward, the old man had adjusted spectacularly to seeing Yugi and Atem as separate people and made Atem feel welcome, treating him just as he treated Yugi, like he always had.

"Yeah, Grandpa treats him like he does me. Including when it comes to waking us up." Yugi snickered.

Atem blushed fuschia. "You're never going to let me live that down, are you Yugi?"

"Nope." He shook his head.

Atem groaned.

Joey frowned in confusion. "I think we're missing something here."

"You know how Grandpa has his own creative ways of getting us up." Yugi asked, eyes sparkling in merriment.

"Yeah," Tea replied, eyes glazing over as she remembered one particular incident. "He poured a bucket of ice water over you when you were about twelve."

Yugi blushed.

Atem grinned mischievously. "Oh, really?"

"Oh shut up!" Yugi pouted.

A lightbulb went off in Tristan's head. "Hey Yugi," he interrupted. "Did your grandpa do that to Atem?"

Yugi immediately quit pouting and smirked. "Not exactly," he replied, ignoring Atem's warning glare. "He actually flipped mattress over and knocked Atem to the floor."

The others clutched their sides and leaned on walls as they laughed.

"Okay," Tea said as they gained their breath back. "We know Atem would be find with your grandpa Yugi, but what about your parents?"

Atem's glare vanished abruptly, his expression turning uneasy and his eyes darting to the side.

"Okay, mostly," Yugi replied for Atem. Nothing bad had happened, but for some reason Atem still felt awkward around Hidekazu and Momose, despite everyone's best intentions and efforts.

Yugi changed the subject before his friends noticed Atem's face. "But he has been banned from using the microwave."

"What?" Joey asked, jaw dropping and eyeballs popping out.

Yugi snickered, ignoring Atem's newly reinstated glare. "He tried using it to heat up some leftovers. Those leftovers exploded all over the inside. He did the same thing with a bowl of water the next day."

The others howled in laughter. "Water?" Tristan managed to blurt through his chuckles. "How in the world do you pull that off?"

Atem groaned and turned away in embarrassment. "The microwave, according to Yugi, doesn't like me."

That statement only made his friends laugh harder, stopping to lean against a wall. It was a few minutes before they calmed down.

"So, banned from cooking duty, huh?" Joey asked.

"Not true." Atem protested.

"No way Joey," Yugi agreed. "Don't you remember stopping over at our place a week ago and taking home our leftover spaghetti from the night before?"

"Yeah, I do. Man, that sauce made the stuff at De Martino's look like that cheap soy sauce you pick up at a grocery store."

Yugi grinned. "Guess who made it."

He jerked his thumb towards a smirking Atem.

"No way! You?" Tristan asked, shoving his jaw closed. "Where did you learn to make sauce like that?"

"Royal secret." Atem deadpanned. He smiled. He'd just gotten lucky in discovering he had a knack for sauces and dips, but he saw no reason to tell them that just now.

"Aw, come on."

"Oh, knock it off, you guys," Tea scolded. "We're here."

"Here" turned out to be a music store, where they bought Atem an MP3 player, and Joey, Tristan, and Tea each insisted that they treat Atem to a number of songs. Since arriving back in Domino, Atem had kept the radio in the room cranked up twenty-four seven, and knew the names of plenty of modern day songs. By the time they, finished, the crimson device was equipped with at least a hundred different songs. Atem found he really enjoyed modern day music compared to ancient Egyptian.

"There's a lot more variety in the modern day," Atem explained when Yugi asked. "I suppose it helps that we can access music from all over the world rather than just one country."

"Yeah, I guess. Do you have a favorite yet?"

"No, not yet. Do I need to?" he asked, furrowing his eyebrows.

Yugi shook his head. "No, you don't. A lot of people do, but it's not required. Come on, there's a bazaar in the town square today."

"A what?"

"A bunch of traveling salespeople have set up stalls to sell people stuff. They usually have some pretty neat things to look at."

They spent the rest of the afternoon in the town square, stopping at a multitude of different stalls. A jewelry stall found Atem picking out gold earrings and silver and gold bracelets and anklets, mimicking the kink he wore as Pharaoh in Egypt. He also found a stall that sold mini Duel Monsters posters. Yugi also insisted that they stop by a nearby movie rental shop to get movies and popcorn for the movie night he planned on hosting in a few days. Tea needed to stop by a pharmacy to pick up some cold medicine for her dad, and Yugi and Atem needed to pick up groceries for the house.

Finally, the group stopped for dinner at an ice cream shop. Atem, not used to eating out, scanned the menu before deciding to try a foot-long hot dog with fries while Joey and Yugi ordered burgers, Tristan went for chicken nuggets and Tea decided on a fish sandwich. For desert, Yugi decided on shakes for Atem and himself, ordering a blueberry for himself and a strawberry for Atem. Tristan ordered a banana split, Tea wanted a vanilla malt, and Joey ordered a butterscotch sundae.

It was Atem's first time having ice cream. After watching Yugi suck on his blueberry, Atem took a cautious sip of his own. His eyes widened. It was cold, thick, and absolutely delicious! Atem sucked the thing down faster and faster.

Yugi noticed. "Hold on, Atem. You can't eat ice cream too fast or you might get—" He froze as Atem clutched his head, grimacing in pain. "Brain freeze," Yugi finished weakly, grabbing Atem's cup so he wouldn't drop it as Joey and Tristan stared before bursting out in laughter.

Half an hour later as they left the mall, Joey and Tristan were still chuckling. "It wasn't that funny, guys," said Atem, frowning.

"I gotta disagree with you on that one, pal. " Joey managed to spit out between his chortling.

"Yeah man, it was hilarious!" Tristan chuckled. "You, former king of Egypt, getting a brain freeze from drinking a shake too fast. How is that not funny?"

Atem shook his head. "Joey and Tristan were eating their ice cream just as fast," he complained to Yugi and Tea. "How did they not get these 'brain freezes?'" he asked.

Tea sighed in exasperation. "They eat ice cream so much they're immune to brain freeze."

"That's why _I_ don't get brain freeze, Tea. Joey, on the other hand…" Tristan smirked. "You can't get a brain freeze if you don't have a brain."

"Hey, I heard that!" Joey yelled as he tackled Tristan to the sidewalk, trying to pin him in an arm lock.

"Hey guys," a familiar voice greeted them.

"Hey Bakura," Tea greeted the white haired boy in return smiling. Yugi waved as Atem grinned. "What's up?"

"Nothing much. I'm on my way to pick up some groceries, and that new book that just came out," he said, glancing down at Joey and Tristan wrestling on the sidewalk. He chuckled. "I see things are normal around here."

"No kidding," Tea groaned. "How have you been?"

"About as fine as I can be. I'm still getting used to being able to be around people without them falling comatose, and I still catch myself glancing over my shoulder every other minute, wondering when I'm going to hear him laughing or when he'll take over." He shuddered. "I guess you could say I've been really paranoid. I'm getting better though."

"That's good." Tea was relieved. Neither she nor the others were sure of what all the spirit of the ring had put Bakura through.

"It helps that the Ring itself is gone beyond anybody's reach, since he could take control of me if it was close enough. Still catch myself dodging into alleys to avoid people to keep them safe. But like I said, I'm getting better. Yugi and Atem have been a big help too."

"Huh? What do you mean?" asked Joey, pausing in mid-headlock.

"They didn't tell you?" Bakura asked, turning to Yugi and Atem.

"Sorry, we meant too, but we kinda forgot." Yugi blushed. "Bakura's been coming over every morning for the last two weeks. He's been helping catch Atem up on schoolwork."

"What? Don't tell me you're giving him grammar lessons," said Tristan, chuckling at the mental image of the Pharaoh blowing a fuse because he struggled to stay awake learning a pointless subject.

"No, not that. As far as language goes, he doesn't need anything," replied Bakura. "It's the sciences that are giving him the most problems. You know, chemistry, physics, microorganisms, geology, earth science, astronomy, that kind of thing. They didn't have any of that back in Ancient Egypt. Well…" He froze, then amended himself after a glancing at Atem. "Actually, they did have some of it, but it definitely wasn't as advanced as it is today."

"Oh," said Tristan.

"Anything else?" asked Joey.

"I already know most of the mathematical properties and theories," replied Atem. "I just need to make sure I remember their names. As far as literature, I just need to know the plot summaries of a few well-known classics, as well as the names of some modern-day novels."

"You have to learn all that?" Joey's jaw nearly dropped to the ground. How could one guy learn and remember all that complex information in the two months they had before school started?

"I know there isn't time to show him everything," Bakura replied, raising his hands, "but I just need to give him a solid enough base for school, so he won't be completely lost when the topics are covered. If he knows and remembers the basics, he'll be just fine." He smiled. "Giving Atem lessons is actually helping me out as well."

"How's that work?" asked Joey.

Bakura sighed. "Despite all the time the spirit of the ring spent in control of my body, I knew very little about him. I mean, it's not like we talked a lot. Atem does know a lot about him, though, and he can give me explanations concerning the spirit's actions. Understanding why things happened the way they did is often a huge step in recovery." He smiled. "And you all know Yugi. He possesses the gift of making anyone feel better."

Everyone nodded. Yugi blushed.

* * *

><p>Okay, I know it seemed like I picked on Atem a lot, but all that was was friendly teasing, nothing more. Didn't want to give the wrong impression.<p>

I'll hopefully update again next weekend, but it's Parent's weekend here at college, so no guarantees. I might have it up this week depending on how busy I get with classes.

Okay, now that I'm done yammering, did you like it? Please review.


	4. Family Vacation

Hey, here's the next chapter. I know I said I would be busy this weekend, but inspiration struck me last weekend after I posted chapter three and I did manage to get this edited. I hope you guys enjoy it.

Disclaimer: I don't own Yugioh

Chapter 4

"Man, it's hot," Yugi groaned as he lay sprawled across the couch. The air conditioner had broken down yesterday, and the temperature was currently approaching ninety-five degrees.

"It's not that bad Yugi," Atem replied, looking perplexed.

"Easy for you to say," Yugi groaned with a vain attempt to wipe away the sweat. "You grew up in Egypt, where it's always this hot. Around here, we like it cooler."

Atem shrugged, not arguing the point. "I heard it's supposed to cool down this weekend."

"Atem, that's three days away. In the meantime, it's supposed to be even hotter tomorrow."

"Don't worry, I'm sure your father will repair the air conditioning soon."

Yugi frowned. "Atem, he's your dad too." Throughout the whole summer, Atem had shown signs of conflict when referred to as a member of the family (those signs were fleeting, but Yugi still noticed), and Yugi decided he was going to get to the bottom of it right then. Why did Atem have such trouble accepting that?

Atem sighed, knowing he couldn't put off the discussion. "Yugi, that's not entirely true—"

"No, it _is_ entirely true." Yugi protested. "Even if we technically don't share the same blood, we're still brothers. And I know Mom and Dad think of you as their son. Are you saying you don't think of them as your parents?"

"Yugi, it's not that simple. I…" he trailed off, pressing one hand to his forehead in frustration.

Yugi's confusion faded to concern. "What's wrong? You seemed perfectly okay with being part of the family when you first met Mom and Dad back at the park after the KC Grand Championship."

Atem looked Yugi square in the eye. "Don't misunderstand me Yugi." His voice was gentle, asking Yugi to listen. "I care greatly for your parents, and I want to think of them that way. I do, mostly, but…"

"But what?" Yugi prompted, his voice soft.

Atem sighed. "I also remember my parents back in Egypt." Yugi _ohhh_ed in comprehension as Atem continued. "My mother died when I was around ten and my father a few years later. But even though I lost them at a young age, they are still my parents, and I love them, and it's strange for me to call anyone else that. And sometimes, I wonder if they would feel betrayed if I called your parents Mother and Father."

Yugi started to protest they wouldn't, but stopped. What did he know about Atem's parents in Ancient Egypt? And if Yugi ever had to go live with another family, how did he know he wouldn't feel uncomfortable calling someone else 'Mom and Dad.' It would be extremely awkward, to say the least.

He wanted to help Atem make the adjustment, to at least make him feel more comfortable with it. Maybe he could.

But then again, what could he do? Maybe it was best to just wait and see how things turned out. Besides, his instincts told him this was something Atem needed to work out on his own.

Atem shifted in his chair, hesitant when he looked at Yugi again. "Yugi, please understand. I love your parents, and I am honored and grateful that they think of me as another son. But…"

Yugi smiled compassionately. "I understand. You loved your other parents a lot, so it's not easy to call someone else that. I guess I can't say I wouldn't feel that way too. Take your time," he assured Atem. In the meantime, Yugi would do what he could to make it less awkward.

Atem smiled in relief. Then he shot a quick glance toward the door to make sure no one else had been listening in. "Would you mind keeping this conversation between us?"

"Sure. Whenever you're ready," he promised.

Atem relaxed, loosening his shoulders. "Thank you."

"Yugi! Atem!" Hidekazu called as he returned from running errands with Momose.

"Hey Dad, what's up?" Yugi greeted as Atem flashed a smile, hiding the conflict he'd just confessed to Yugi.

"How do you two feel about a week long camping vacation?"

Yugi and Atem stared. Discounting Duelist Kingdom, Yugi had never camped before, and neither had Atem.

"It's in a national park, and they've got a lot of activities," explained Momose. "It's also really beautiful."

Atem glanced at Yugi, who shrugged. Outdoors usually wasn't Yugi's forte, but he'd be willing to give it a shot. And Atem, he'd probably never been modern day camping.

"All right, sure."

"Sweet! Pack your bags, we'll be leaving in two days."

* * *

><p>The four-hour car ride there proved mostly uneventful. Atem and Yugi mostly played card games and discussed different Duel Monsters strategies.<p>

"Hey boys," called Momose.

"Yeah?" they replied.

"You should take a look out the window," she said, grinning.

Yugi shrugged and turned as Atem put away the cards. "Whoa!" he exclaimed. "Atem, you've got to take a look!" Atem glanced up and turned to look out his own window.

He almost forgot to breathe. On either side of the road mountains surrounded them in different shades of blue, purple, green, and gray. The ground was covered with dark green pine trees. The sun rested halfway behind a mountain, casting shadows and painting the sky in many shades of pink, purple, red, yellow, orange, and blue.

"Quite a sight, isn't it?" asked Hidekazu, smirking at the sudden silence.

Neither Yugi nor Atem could answer, still awestruck by the sight before them.

After arriving at the campsite, Yugi thought setting up the tent was an adventure in itself. Atem struggled with the concept of each pole belonging to a separate part of the tent and mixed up the pole that held up the center with one that belonged on the side. He took the teasing with good humor though, and Yugi was grateful.

What surprised Yugi was that Atem turned out to be a pro at roasting marshmallows. "Are you sure you've never roasted them before?" he asked as Atem pulled out golden brown marshmallow and bit half of it off, revealing the gooey center. Hidekazu and Momose had retreated to the tent to set up their sleeping bags.

"No, I haven't. They didn't make marshmallows like this back in Ancient Egypt, Yugi," Atem replied, popping the other half into his mouth.

"Then how are you so good at?"

Atem shrugged.

They roasted their marshmallows in silence for a few minutes before Yugi gasped. "Wait a second. You said they didn't make marshmallows like this in Ancient Egypt. Ancient Egypt didn't have marshmallows at all."

"On the contrary Yugi, marshmallows actually exist in Ancient Egypt. I remember eating them. Granted, they weren't exactly the same as the ones today, but still."

"Are you sure?"

"When you were talking about roasting marshmallows, I was looking on the computer for opinions on whether burned or light brown was better. Just out of curiosity," he replied to Yugi's questioning stare. "Then I found a website that said they came from Ancient Egypt, and I recognized them immediately."

"Whoa."

"Hey boys!" called Hidekazu.

"Yeah," Yugi replied.

"It's getting late, so I think we should start turning in. Atem, could you extinguish the fire? There's a bucket of water over by the picnic table."

"I see it," said Atem, grabbing the bucket and dousing the fire. He coughed a little at the resulting smoke.

Momose shone a flashlight outside so Yugi and Atem wouldn't trip over poles or stakes. "Make sure you two take off your shoes before getting in. I'd rather not get grass or dirt in here."

"Okay Mom," said Yugi as he and Atem slipped out of their shoes and crawled inside.

Yugi chuckled slightly as Atem struggled to crawl into his sleeping bag, unused to it. But eventually he got situated.

"Good night Atem. Good night Yugi," said Hidekazu.

"Good night," they replied.

* * *

><p>"So, what do you guys think?" asked Hidekazu as they stood outside the miniature amusement park in the small town outside the national park the next morning. Inside the amusement park, they could see a climbing wall, bumper cars, mini-golf, and other assorted attractions. "We'll do something a little closer to nature later. I just thought this place would be a good start." He smirked. "Don't worry, I've got something special planned for this afternoon."<p>

Yugi grinned and dragged Atem off to the bumper cars.

Though he initially struggled to steer the things at first, allowing Yugi ample opportunities to ram him, when Atem figured out the secret, he paid Yugi back ten-fold as both of them laughed. Atem had never known bumper cars were that fun.

Both of them enjoyed several rounds of mini-golf, scoring a number of holes in one and leaving Hidekazu and Momose in the dust. Yugi enjoyed the hole with the windmill while Atem liked it when he needed to finesse the ball around certain obstacles, and both smirked when he managed a hole in one. Yugi burst out laughing when Atem sent his golf ball into the nearby pond in the first round and had to get another one. In retaliation, Atem knocked one of Yugi's balls further away from the hole when it was in his ball's way.

Neither spent much time on the climbing wall. Climbing up the wall reminded Atem a little too much of the time Thief King Bakura knocked him down a cliff, and Yugi didn't enjoy climbing in general.

Finally, after a lunch of greasy amusement park junk food, Hidekazu drove everyone to the other end of town. "Where is this?" asked Atem.

Hidekazu grinned and pointed at the sign.

_Manning Underground Family Maze: _

_Covering Over Four Acres and Featuring Three Miles of Pathways—Underground And In The Dark—Navigate It If You Can!_

Yugi and Atem stared.

"What do you two think?" asked Hidekazu, smiling. "Momose and I aren't really into mazes, so we'll wait in the visitor center." He handed them each a ticket. "I bought one for each of you, so you can go in whenever—"

Yugi and Atem leaped out of the car and raced for the entrance.

"…you want," finished Hidekazu, laughing. He'd half expected that.

Momose laughed along with him. "How long do you think it'll take them to get through?"

"A couple hours. And it's what, three o' clock now?"

"Yeah. We had a late lunch."

"And it took us an hour to get to the town. So we should get back to the campsite around six, which is what I was hoping for. Sounds like a great time to get back and just relax until we're hungry enough for dinner."

"What's on the agenda for tomorrow? I know we're touring caves in the morning, but that ends at eleven. What about the afternoon?"

Hidekazu grinned.

* * *

><p>"Whitewater rafting?" asked Atem.<p>

"Yup," Yugi replied as he struggled to pull on his wetsuit. "Dad's been wanting to take the family whitewater rafting for years. It's actually how he and Mom met."

"They met while rafting down a river?"

"Mom just worked at the desk," Yugi corrected. "Dad was the one who took people down the rivers. They went on dates after their shifts ended." He snickered as he watched Atem. "Need help with your wetsuit?"

"Yugi, please remind me why we have to wear these things," replied Atem as he finally managed to pull on his wetsuit.

"Your clothes will get soaked if you don't," said Momose, already in her own wetsuit. "The section of the river we're rafting is a class two to three, with one class four obstacle at the end. Trust me, we're going to get wet."

"Class?" asked Atem.

"They'll explain everything when we get on the boat, Atem," said Hidekazu. "Don't worry. This is going to be fun."

Atem nodded uncertainly as he fingered the helmet.

* * *

><p>Half an hour later, the raft floated leisurely down the river and Atem wondered why this was called a thrill trip. The guide had shown them how to turn right and left, how to slow down and move forward, the whole nine yards. But so far, Atem saw no reason for it.<p>

"All right everyone, we've got a couple miles before we hit the rapids. Anyone wants to jump off and swim last minute, now's the time."

Yugi grinned from his spot behind Atem, handed his oar to Momose, who was sitting behind him, and slid off the raft into the water along with a few other preteen kids.

"This feels awesome!" he exclaimed. Then he turned back to the boat. "Come on Atem, the water's fine."

Atem tried to protest, but the rest of the teens called encouragement too, along with a few of the adults still in the raft. He sighed in amusement and handed his oar to Hidekazu, who was sitting in front of him, before jumping in.

The water was cold, and absolutely invigorating. He grinned as he floated next to Yugi, splashing him just for the heck of it.

"Hey!" Yugi protested as he splashed Atem back, accidentally catching another kid who looked about twelve. The kid grinned at the challenge and splashed back, sparking a no-holds barred water war which occasionally reached the adults still in the raft.

"All right, everyone back in," the guide ordered a few minutes later.

One minute after the adults had heaved the kids back in, Atem heard a distant roaring as the water started turning whiter with visible rapids. He wondered if this was what Hidekazu had been looking forward to. They didn't look that dangerous from here, he thought as they approached the first small dip.

_Splash!_

Atem jerked backwards as a wave of water swept over the raft, soaking the occupants. That dip had felt steeper than it looked, and as he glanced ahead, he saw more rocks protruding from the water causing the guide shouting directions, and rapids as far as the eye could see.

He grinned in anticipation, matching Yugi's expression.

Waves splashed over the raft, soaking entire party as they rode further and further along the rapids. They maneuvered around boulders and crashed into one of them, constantly paddling according to the guide's direction.

Atem's favorite part was riding the dips and crests of waves. They would ride straight up one and the former Pharaoh would feel a brief sensation of weightlessness until the raft slammed into the water again, soaking the occupants, just in time to catch the next one. And the guide said they had a few miles of this. He laughed and whooped during the whole trip, and grinned as Yugi did the same.

Finally, the river calmed down slightly, though Atem, Yugi, and everyone else could still hear a distant roar. "All right everyone!" the guide yelled. "We're approaching that class four obstacle I told you about. It's a waterfall that's roughly six feet tall. Normally, that wouldn't be a problem, but it is straight drop down. Be prepared!"

Atem grinned in anticipation as they rounded a bend and could see the waterfall. The guide shouted last minute directions.

All of sudden, they were plunging, dropping straight down into the churning water below. The raft landed with a massive _Ooomph_! Atem was launched from his seat by the impact, and only Yugi's quick reflexes stopped Atem from taking an unplanned dive, by snagging Atem by the back of his lifejacket.

"Everybody okay?" the guide asked. When everyone nodded the affirmative, he smiled. "Okay, around that next bend is where we disembark. Hope you all had a great time, and thank you. You've been a great group."

Yugi and Atem grinned at each other as they jumped off the raft and helped pull it to shore once they reached the drop-off point.

"So, what did you guys think?" asked Hidekazu as they headed for the bus.

"That was awesome!" Yugi beamed, still high from the adrenaline rush.

Atem nodded. That had been one of the most exciting, not-fighting-for-your-soul, and fun events in his life. He was really glad the Eye had decided he could stay in the present.

* * *

><p>So what did you guys think? I hope you liked it. By the way, the thing about marshmallows existing in Ancient Egypt-I didn't make that up. No, seriously (call me nuts if you want to, but I actually did look up degrees of roasting marshmallows to see if golden brown was the best, and I stumbled onto the fact. I know, I'm crazy). Egyptians extracted the sap to make it, and maybe the pith too (the stuff under the stem). But marshmallows were a sweet in Ancient Egypt. Just thought you'd be interested to know that.<p>

I'm having a bit of trouble with the next chapter, as it's when Atem first goes to school with the others. I'm trying to make it longer and good, but I'm struggling with ideas and inspiration. I'll try my best to have it up this weekend, if it's not, I'm sorry. Please review.


	5. First Day of School

Here's chapter five! I hope you enjoy it.

Disclaimer: I don't own Yugioh.

Chapter 5

Atem groaned and pulled the covers over his head as sunlight streamed through the window and landed right on his face. Last night had been filled with last minute checking on his school supplies and making sure he had everything. Besides, the bed was especially comfortable this morning, and he really didn't want to get up.

"Time to get up boys!" Solomon called as he barged in. He frowned when his only response was two groans. "Come now, you two can't miss your first day of school."

"Why not?" asked Yugi.

Solomon chuckled. "Because your parents would kill you, and then I'd be next. And this old man's still got a lot of life in him, and he'd hate for it to be cut short. Besides, Arthur still owes me that chocolate shake."

Yugi and Atem chuckled in reluctant amusement as they finally hauled themselves out of their beds and Solomon left to make breakfast.

"So, was your bed really comfortable this morning?" Yugi asked.

"What?" Atem nearly did a double take at the random question. Why would Yugi ask that?

Yugi smiled in mock regret. "Because whenever the first day of school or the day of a big test or project comes up, beds like to be extra comfy just to torture us when we have to get up."

Atem shook his head with a smile of his own. "Well, I'd say our beds have had their fun. Let's not let them continue."

Yugi groaned.

"Besides," Atem said with a smirk. "I could always send them to the Shadow Realm if they do it again."

Yugi burst out laughing. "You could, couldn't you? Well, you'd better not. I happen to like my bed most of the time, and I really don't want to have to explain to Mom and Dad that we need to go furniture shopping because you sent my bed to another dimension."

Atem just chuckled.

* * *

><p>After snarfing down Momose's breakfast of bacon, eggs, and pancakes, the two spikey-haired teens stuffed their notebooks and pencils into their backpacks and headed for the door.<p>

"Ready for your first day of school Atem?" Yugi asked as he shouldered his bag.

"School's not what I'm worried about Yugi," replied Atem. "It's everybody's reaction to there being two of us." When he and Yugi had walked around town over the summer, they'd both garnered a lot of weird looks and outright staring from a lot of people. It hadn't bothered him at first, but when people wouldn't stop, it had made him very uneasy. Yugi had reassured him that the ogglers were just surprised to see the King of Games had a clone. Or in this case, a twin.

"Come on, it'll be fine."

"I'm really not looking forward to the being stared at like some jewel a merchant has for sale."

"Relax, it'll all die down once people get used to the idea that I have a twin. And if the stares really get on our nerves, I think Joey and Tristan can help."

"True." Atem nodded. "Do you think Bakura taught me enough?"

Yugi smiled assuringly. "Trust me Atem, most people at school don't remember everything either except the basic foundations in science. And about half the people in my class mix up the math formulas and put British history with French in world history. You'll do great."

Atem nodded as they walked out.

"At the very least, you'll know Egyptian history."

That did the trick. Atem laughed as they strode down the street.

"Have a good day boys!" Solomon called as they were leaving.

"Bye Grandpa," replied Yugi. Atem waved.

The two strolled down the sidewalk, enjoying the surprisingly cool morning after two weeks of intense heat. Hardly any cars drove by, so either everyone was running late, work started later than usual, or everyone got there early. Not that Yugi was complaining. It was nice to walk on the sidewalk without a bunch of car horns ruining the morning.

"Yugi?"

"Yeah?"

"Are midterms and finals really as bad as Joey makes them out to be?" asked Atem, eyebrows furrowing.

Yugi jerked his head in surprise at the random question. "It depends." He shrugged.

"On what?"

"Partly on the subject, you know, if you're good at math or science, then the tests won't be too difficult. It also depends on whether or not you studied beforehand."

"Joey doesn't study much, does he?"

A light bulb lit up Yugi's head. _So that's what happened. Joey must have come by when I wasn't around and scared Atem with horror stories about tests_. Yugi shook his head, smiling. "No, he doesn't. I wouldn't get too worried about finals or midterms; they're a ways away. And don't let Joey stress you about them."

"How did you it was Joey who told me about them?"

Yugi cocked his head. "You mentioned Joey. And knowing him, it wasn't that hard to figure out."

"Right." Atem blushed. "All right, I believe you."

"Yo Yugi! Atem!"

"Hey Joey!" Yugi greeted as the blonde raced up to join them, followed closely by Tristan and Tea, squeaking in protest as Joey first trapped him in a headlock and then noogied him, then proceeding to do it to Atem.

"You guys ready?" asked Tristan.

"Yeah, we are." Yugi nodded as he attempted to fix his hair after its encounter with Joey's knuckles.

"You too, Atem?" questioned Tea.

"Yes Tea, I am."

"Even though _someone_…" Yugi glanced at Joey in mock stern expression. "…tried to scare him with horror stories about finals."

"Joey!" cried Tea in exasperation.

"Aw, come on!" Joey protested. "I was just messing with him!"

Yugi and Atem shook their heads, amused.

_THUD!_

"What the…" Yugi exclaimed. A black haired kid wearing the Domino high school uniform riding his bike had crashed into the wall beside them. "You okay?"

The kid shook his head. "Yeah. Must have been seeing things. I—I—I—how are there two of you?" The kid freaked out, eyes darting between Atem and Yugi.

"Relax kid," Joey assured. "This is Yugi's twin brother Atem."

The kid's eyes widened. "Yugi has a twin?"

"Yep," replied Tea. "But Atem's been living abroad for must of his life and decided to come back just recently."

"Oh." The kid's face reddened in embarrassment. "Well, uh, gotta go!" He grabbed his bike and took off.

"Okay," said Tristan. "That was a little strange."

Atem frowned. "Do you know him Yugi? I don't think you told me about him before."

"I don't know him Atem. I think he just knows me from the times you and I were on TV."

"Oh."

"You think we're going to have to deal with those reactions a lot more?" asked Tristan in annoyance.

"It's just a reaction we'll have to get used to for a while," Tea pointed out. "Most people don't know Yugi has a twin brother. Don't worry, eventually people will get used to seeing two of you."

Everyone nodded. Hopefully people got used to it fast.

* * *

><p>"So, Yug, Atem. I never got 'round to asking ya, how was your family vacation?" said Joey as the five of them sat together, ignoring the many stares and whispers of their fellow classmates.<p>

"It was awesome!" replied Yugi. "Atem got his first taste of bumper cars and we went whitewater rafting."

"Whitewater rafting?" Tristan's eyes widened. "No fair, man! I always wanted to do that."

"Bumper cars?" asked Tea.

Yugi laughed. "Yeah, wish you guys could have seen us when we started. He didn't have a clue how to steer the thing."

Atem's eyebrows rose. "I seem to remember sending you crashing into the wall more than once."

"Only after I pulled if off ten times."

"What else did you do?" asked Tea.

"Yugi and I navigated an underground maze, and all four of us took a tour of underground caves."

"Yeah. Atem and I both won a s'more making kit for beating the record of how long it took to navigate the maze."

"Both of ya?" Joey frowned.

"Call it fate, call it destiny, but somehow Atem and I managed to exit at the same time." Yugi shrugged. That was yet another weird thing to add to the list.

"How were the caves?" asked Tristan.

"Really interesting. One of the rock formations resembled a human skull."

Joey cringed. "Oh man. Glad I wasn't there."

Tristan snickered. "Yeah, you probably would've fainted on the spot."

Joey growled and would've tackled Tristan, except for the fact that Atem held him back as the bell rang

"All right class! Get yourselves in order" the homeroom teacher ordered as he entered the classroom, glaring at Joey and not noticing Atem and Yugi.

Mumbling and groaning, the students reluctantly sat down and faced the front of the class, occasionally shooting glances at the two Muto's, much to the their annoyance. Joey just grumbled that Tristan wouldn't have been much better before settling down.

"Alright everyone, welcome to the new school year. I'm hoping this'll turn out to be great year for all of you. But we do need to go over a few rules first."

Joey and Tristan silently face planted on their desks. "Same speech every year," Joey grumbled. Tristan nodded.

"Even though this is only homeroom, I still expect everyone to behave and follow school policies, and that includes paying attention." His eyes landed on Joey and Tristan, along with a few other students, his gaze stern, before he returned his attention to the attendance sheet. "I'm glad to see we didn't lose anybody, and I'm extremely pleased to see we've got a new student too. Welcome to Domino High School…" he peered down the list. "Atem…" he froze. "Atem _Muto_?!"

Joey and Tristan's heads shot up off the desks, eager to see the teacher's reaction to the former Pharaoh. Atem raised his hand. "Thank you."

The teacher's eyes met Atem's and froze, flashing between Yugi and his apparent lookalike. "How…what?" His jaw bobbed up and down, his eyes bulging like a fish out of water.

Joey and Tristan tried not to crack up laughing at their teacher's face and failed miserably, only to quiet down at Tea's glare.

"Atem's my twin brother," Yugi explained hastily, hoping to save his teacher from a heart attack while Atem looked on in bewilderment. He hadn't expected the teachers to stare as well as the students.

"Your twin?" the teacher rasped.

"I've been living abroad with some family friends," explained Atem, trying valiantly to ignore Joey and Tristan's renewed snickering. "But I decided to come back here and live with Yugi recently."

"Yugi never mentioned a twin brother," another student protested.

"Nobody ever asked," replied Yugi, shrugging. It was true. Nobody'd asked him if he had any siblings.

Nobody replied to that.

One of the students turned to Yugi's friends. "Did you know Yugi had a twin?"

"Yugi told about him a bit after we became friends, and we met him over a video chat. Started talking to him as much as Yugi did." replied Tristan. Okay, not entirely true. But nobody needed to know about Atem's _interesting_ past. "But we didn't actually see the two of them together until we took that vacation to Egypt with Yugi."

"You met him in Egypt?" another student asked.

"Yep. Gotta say, it was great seeing Yugi and the Pharaoh together."

"The Pharaoh?" the student asked in confusion.

Tristan clapped his hands over his mouth, eyes bulging. "Uh, that's—I mean—"

Tea rolled her eyes. "Seriously Tristan, Atem asked you to quit calling him that." She turned to the student. "When we were in Egypt, we took a tour of the Valley of the Kings. Atem's like an expert on Egyptian history and he was telling us a lot about it. The tour guide got fed up and asked Atem if _he'd_ like to lead the tour. Joey called him Pharaoh as a joke and the nickname kind of stuck, even though Atem's told those two to quit calling him that."

"Oh." Everyone nodded as the subject was dropped and the teacher tried to return to his welcome speech, but it was clear he was still distracted. It took him twice the usual amount of time to run the class through the rules, and he nearly forgot the code concerning the use of jewelry until another student, one with short brown hair who was known for a bit of an obsession with rules, pointed it out to him.

_This day is certainly going to be interesting_. Atem thought.

"Nice save," Joey whispered.

"Yeah," Tristan agreed in relief.

"Just be more careful next time," Tea warned, but smiled to let them know she wasn't mad.

The morning flew by and lunch rolled around. Joey ran ahead of everyone else and volunteered to buy for everyone, telling them to stay in the room.

"Let's hope there's still food left by the time he gets back," Tea joked.

"If there isn't I'll kill him," Tristan replied. "Or never make him tacos again. Whichever gets his attention."

"You want me to make sure?" asked Atem. He was the only one besides Tea and Serenity who could keep Joey under control when it came to food.

"Yeah, why not? Probably better. Good luck man!" Tristan clapped him on the back as Atem left the room.

The former Pharaoh shook his head as he turned the corner and left the room. He did need to make sure the food made it to the room, but he also wanted to stretch his legs. Now he knew why Joey and Tristan complained cramped legs from being in school for so long. Not only could lessons get boring, but the students also stayed in the same room the whole day. He needed to get out of there just to stretch.

Out of nowhere, a hand clamped down on his shoulder and spun him around, slamming him into the lockers behind him. It didn't hurt—he'd faced much worse pain when battling the Thief King and Zorc in the Memory world—it just surprised him. He glanced up and found himself facing a tall, well-built black haired, teenager wearing a sneer. He seemed familiar somehow.

"Been a long time, hasn't it Muto?"

Atem frowned. Who was this idiot, and what did he want. "Can I help you?"

"You think you can get away with getting my brother expelled and me suspended!" the idiot demanded.

"I have no idea what you're talking about."

"Dumb as well as wimpy, Muto?"

Atem snarled. This imbecile was clearly mistaking him for Yugi, but maybe he should teach him a little lesson about insulting his little brother. And for picking on him in the past. It must have been before the Millennium Puzzle was solved, because the former Pharaoh didn't recognize this one. But he'd dealt with plenty of people who wanted to bully Yugi, and this one would be no different, except for the fact that Atem couldn't use Shadow Games on this one.

"Got nothin' to say wimp?"

Atem grabbed the bully's wrist and twisted, forcing his attacker to let and allowing Atem to twist the arm around his back and pin the bully to the lockers instead.

"What the—Let me go you little runt!" The bully struggled and twisted to no avail.

Atem smirked. "Not likely."

The teenager thrashed and struggled harder "How are you pulling this off? You're a wimp."

"Hey," a new voice called. Joey rounded the corner somehow managing to balance five trays in his hand while simultaneously taking bites of his bread on the top tray. He growled as he came upon the scene. Carefully setting the trays down, he stormed over. "What's going on" he demanded.

"You been teaching Muto some guts Wheeler?" the pinned teen asked, the derision his voice making Atem want to throw him on the floor.

Joey growled. "Yugi's always had more guts in his pinky finger than you have in your whole fat body!"

"Ha! Then explain why he always let himself get picked on and why he's suddenly grown a little spine." He glanced backward at Atem. "Emphasis on _little_."

Atem growled.

Joey scoffed. "He's faced things that send you and your brother crying for your mommy. And let me guess. You didn't even show up till just now."

"Of course not."

"Well then, news flash. The kid who's finally pinned your sorry butt against the lockers ain't Yugi. That's his twin brother Atem."

The teen glanced back at the former Pharaoh only to gulp as he took in the slightly different hair and facial features. "That explains it. The other one wouldn't have the guts to do this."

Atem growled. "Watch it."

"Relax Atem," another voice said. Atem eyes shot towards Yugi, who was leaning against the hallway. "He's not worth it."

Atem sneered at the bully. "You're right Yugi," he replied as he let go, though he prepared to restrain the teen again as oaf stomped toward Yugi.

Pride flashed through Atem as Yugi didn't even flinch.

"Looks like you either actually grew some backbone or you're a really good actor Muto."

"Things have changed Orochi. You're not that scary, especially since you only pick on people who you know can't or won't fight back."

Orochi glowered. "Why you—" He froze as Atem, Joey, Tristan, and Tea all stood behind Yugi. He growled and left. Yugi had been right that he only picked on people if he knew he wouldn't get hurt.

"Yugi, who was that?" asked Atem as everyone picked up their own lunch trays. "And what are you all doing here?"

"When you and Joey didn't get back, we wondered what had happened. I mean, Joey's easily distracted." He ignored Joey's _Hey_. "But you aren't, so we figured we should make sure everything was all right. I'm glad we got here when we did."

"And that was Orochi," Tea explained, her face scrunched in disgust as they walked down the hallways. "You remember Ushio. He got expelled for beating up Yugi, Joey, and Tristan, then threatened Yugi with a knife if he didn't pay him, and you took care of him?"

"Yes." It was an uncomfortable topic. Nobody really liked to remember some of the things Atem did when he was first released from the Puzzle. Ushio had recovered, but he still wasn't allowed back in school.

"Well, Orochi is Ushio's brother. A teacher caught him beating up Yugi in the hallway a few months before Yugi solved the Puzzle. It hadn't gotten too bad by that time, but he was still suspended, with a restraining order that prevented him from going near Yugi. He blames Yugi for it, and for getting Ushio expelled. I guess he's been waiting to do this for a while."

_So that was why Orochi seemed so familiar. Family resemblance._ Atem peered down at the tray, thinking. Was this going to be a problem? Were they going to have to deal with Orochi trying to beat up Yugi for revenge?

"Don't worry about it Atem." Atem glanced up to see Yugi giving him a reassuring smile. "Orochi doesn't go after a person if that person has friends that'll hunt him down later. You guys pretty much took care of him."

Atem grinned.

"Yeah," said Joey. Now let's eat lunch! I'm looking forward to this afternoon."

"Oh really," Tea teased. "You were the one who was complaining that school shouldn't take eight hours."

Joey rolled his eyes. "I know. But I'm really enjoying all our teachers' reactions to Atem."

Yugi and Atem shook their heads in amusement.

* * *

><p>"Aw man, this whole day's been awesome," said Joey, laughing his head off. "I've never seen our math teacher's jaw fall so close to the floor!"<p>

"And our grammar teacher!" Tristan agreed, laughing as hard as Joey. "She usually starts off the year with a lecture and a homework assignment, but he was so distracted with Yugi and Atem looking alike that he couldn't assign us anything!" He grinned and glanced at Yugi and Atem. "Have I ever mentioned how awesome it is that there are two of you now?"

Tea, Yugi, and Atem rolled their eyes.

* * *

><p>So, what did you guys think? This chapter didn't come out quite as good as I wanted it to, and I'm still not entirely satisfied with it. But then again, it was a bit difficult to write.<p>

I would like to thank Aqua Girl 007 for her help. I was originally going to use Ushio, but she pointed out that Ushio was driven insane by Atem early in the manga. The English anime said he was expelled, so I tried to combine the two scenarios and Ushio's brother was created. He won't be seen again since I don't plan to do another school chapter.

I would really enjoy hearing any feedback. Please review.


	6. At the Beach Part 1

Okay, here's chapter six. I hope you guys like it.

Disclaimer: I don't own Yugioh

Chapter 6

"Yugi, where are we going?" asked Atem as he followed Yugi and Solomon to the car. His younger brother had shown up right when he'd gotten back from the post office and told him to put the mail down and get in the car, refusing to tell him why.

"You'll see Atem. It's a surprise," Yugi said as he jumped into the car.

Atem grimaced as he slid into the backseat beside Yugi.

"What, you don't like my surprises?" Yugi asked as he buckled up.

"I still haven't forgotten the time you set me up with Tea." Atem replied as Solomon started the engine.

"You still haven't let that go?"

"No, I've let it go. But I've also learned to treat surprises from you with extreme caution," said Atem as the car pulled out of the driveway and started down the street.

Yugi shook his head, an exasperated expression on his face. "Oh relax."

"Not going to happen," Atem replied stubbornly.

Solomon chuckled as he steered the car around a corner and headed for the outskirts of town toward the beach. If he didn't know better, he would have sworn Yugi and Atem were real brothers. They certainly acted like it often enough.

About a half hour later he pulled up to the beach. "Boys, we're here," he announced, interrupting their quarrel.

"Yugi, where are we?" asked Atem as he opened the car door, hot air and a bright sun blasting his face as he stepped out.

"Surprise!" yelled Joey's voice.

Atem jerked in surprise. Standing in front of a beach was a small group of people, old friends. Joey, Tristan, and Tea stood at the front. Bakura stood right behind them next to Duke and, to Atem's surprise, Kaiba and Mokuba. Next to Professor Hawkins and Rebecca, Hidekazu and Momose stood by Serenity and another woman Atem didn't know.

"Like it?" asked Yugi, grinning.

"Yes," replied Atem, still recovering his bearings, "but why was this put together?"

"The first weekend after school starts, it's a tradition to have a day at the beach or somewhere fun, to celebrate before the hard and boring part of school sets in," Joey explained with a grin on his face.

Atem grinned back as he, Yugi, and Solomon joined the others.

"We've got the burgers and hotdogs grilled and ready to go," announced Duke with a wave of his arm. "So everyone dig in."

The table was mobbed as everyone grabbed for a plate and to reach the food and the condiments before they ran out. Joey and Tristan loaded their buns with every burger topping imaginable while Atem stuck to a couple hot dogs with mustard.

"See Atem," said Yugi as they sat down. "My surprises aren't that bad."

"I'm still going to be careful around them." Atem smirked teasingly before narrowing his eyes and tilting his head. "Yugi?"

"Yeah?"

"How on earth was Kaiba convinced to attend this?" Even though Kaiba had probably somewhat accepted the weird magical incidents he'd experienced-even if he'd never admit it-he still hadn't changed his disdain for friendly gatherings when he could be working or challenging Yugi or Atem to a duel.

"Mokuba," replied Kaiba, materializing behind Atem and Yugi and making them jump. "I promised Mokuba he and I would spend this weekend together and he decided to spend today here. He's the only reason I came." Kaiba glared at them.

Now that made sense. "I should've guessed." Atem chuckled as Kaiba stalked off in annoyance, no doubt to grumble at his younger brother for pulling him into this.

After lunch ended, games of multiple kinds were set up all around the beach: checkers, chess, Monster World, Dungeon Dice, Clue, Monopoly, and Duel Monsters. Joey went to chat with his sister. Duke set up a game of Dungeon Dice with Solomon and Kaiba set up the chessboard for Mokuba since the two hadn't played since the orphanage. Bakura set up Monster World with Yugi while Tristan splashed Tea with water and she chased him into the ocean.

"Hey Atem!" called Joey, standing next to Serenity. "Get over here!"

Atem narrowed his eyes as he strolled over. "What is it Joey?"

Joey grinned. "Over the summer I told Serenity a lot more of the details that she didn't know before. You know, about Battle City. And I caught 'er up on everything that happened afterward, includin' the fact that you and Yug are separate now, and I got to thinking. You two haven't officially met yet."

Atem blinked. "I guess not."

"Okay then, Atem, meet my little sister, Serenity. Serenity," he said in mock imperial tones, "meet Atem, former Pharaoh of Egypt, former Spirit of the Milennium Puzzle—"

"Oh, knock if off Joey." Atem rolled his eyes, lightly thwapping Joey on the side of the head.

"Hey!"

Serenity laughed. "It's nice to officially meet you," She shook his hand.

"You too," said Atem smiling. Yugi had spoken with Serenity several times on the way to the Battle City finals in Mai's car because Joey had wanted Serenity to know each of his best friends, but Atem hadn't bothered taking over and Serenity hadn't know about the Pharaoh anyway.

"Hello there."

The woman Atem had seen with Serenity earlier popped up beside them with a friendly and curious smile.

Joey jumped three feet in the air. "Jeez Ma, don't sneak up on me like that!" he whined.

The woman chuckled. "Sorry," she apologized.

Joey shook his head shrugging it off. "Aw, it's fine. By the way, Ma, meet Atem, Yug's big brother. Atem, my ma."

"It's a pleasure, Atem," said Mrs. Wheeler. "Joey's told me and Serenity a lot about you and Yugi over the phone."

"It's good to meet you as well," said Atem, with a polite smile before Mrs. Wheeler returned her attention to her son and asked him if he'd been staying out of trouble. The former king chuckled as Joey vehemently tried to deny that he'd gotten detention for starting a fight, protesting that the other guy started it.

"It's a pleasure to see you again, Pharaoh," said a pleasant voice from behind Atem. He whirled around in surprise as he came face to face with Arthur Hawkins. "Oh, excuse me. It's Atem now, isn't it? Solomon told me all about your most recent adventures."

Atem grinned. "It's good to see you as well, Professor. How is Rebecca?"

"She's perfectly fine. Just finished up her generals in college and is moving on into more specified classes. She's majoring in technology." He glanced to the side and chuckled. Atem followed his gaze and noticed Rebecca pouncing on Yugi, making him blush and Tea steam at the ears from out in the ocean. Atem couldn't help but laugh as well.

"So, how have you been?"

"Oh, fine. With Paradius gone, I've continued my research with Atlantis. Haven't gotten very far I'm afraid." He shrugged. "Well, there are always more ruins to look for. What of you?"

Atem shrugged as well, but smiled. "I've been fine. I've enjoyed not having to worry about the next bad guy coming along and trying to steal my Puzzle or soul. Or both."

Professor Hawkins nodded.

Atem was about to ask him if he'd ever found anything concerning Duel Monsters before Egypt, but he saw a bush rustle out of the corner of his eye. "Excuse me a moment, Professor," he said hastily, stepping into the trees and crouching.

Two short figures, slightly taller than Yugi, whispered to each other. Atem only caught every three words or so, but he did hear "God cards" and "deserve them."

He froze. He knew the voices. And they were after the God cards. He had to stop them! But Yugi, who hated violence, wouldn't appreciate it if Atem hurt two boys over a few cards, regardless of how rare they were or how dangerous they could be in the wrong hands.

Atem could've slapped himself. He had the car keys; he could just take the three God Cards out of the car and replace them with three of his own. He just had to make it to the car before the two uninvited guests.

* * *

><p>"Where were you Atem? We wondered if you'd gotten lost," exclaimed Duke as Atem returned to the group. The inventor of Dungeon Dice stood in a circle with Joey, Tristan, Tea, Bakura, and Yugi. "You wanna play hacky sack with us?"<p>

"Sure," said Atem, glancing back at the trees as he strolled over to them.

"You okay?" asked Tea.

Before Atem could answer, a car alarm beeped from the road. "That's our car!" cried Momose as she raced up the slope with Hidekazu, Joey, and Tristan hot on her heels.

"Who'd wanna take your car?" asked Mokuba. "No offense!"

"What the—" Tristan's voice exclaimed from the top of the hill. Tea gasped.

Footsteps pounded in the distance before two cries were heard, and a few seconds later, Tristan and Joey led the way down the slope, hauling with them two very familiar boys.

"Weevil Underwood and Rex Raptor?" asked Tea in disgust. "What do they want?"

"They were breaking into our car!" said Hidekazu angrily.

"We were not!" argued Weevil, trying unsuccessfully to pry Joey's hand off his shirt.

"It wasn't what it looked like!" said Rex, attempting to kick Tristan.

"Wait a second." Joey narrowed his eyes and clenched his fists. "You were tryin' to steal the God cards again, weren't ya?"

"No!" the two exclaimed, faces turning fearful.

Joey jabbed his finger at them. "Don't pull that crap on us. We saw ya in the backseat, you were probably goin' through Yugi's deck lookin' for 'em."

"Actually, Joey, I keep the God cards in a special container that Grandpa gave me," Yugi corrected.

"Then they stole the cards from the container," replied Tristan.

"Did not!"

"I can go and get it to check," Bakura volunteered. He returned half a minute later with the container. "It's empty."

"So you did take 'em." Joey glared, shaking Weevil by the collar. "Cough 'em up!"

"Calm down, Joey. You too, Tristan!" Atem ordered.

"Yeah," said Weevil before his eyes fell on Atem. "What the—"

Rex's jaw dropped.

"That's Atem, Yugi's twin brother," Bakura supplied. Recalling that Rex and Weevil probably assumed Atem didn't know them and since they didn't remember anything they'd learned from Dartz, he realized he should probably introduce Atem to them to keep the secret. "Atem—"

"I know who they are Bakura."

"You know our reputation huh?" Rex asked in smug superiority while Weevil preened.

Atem gave them an icy glare. "Actually, Yugi and Joey still have tapes of their duels from Duelist Kingdom and Battle City." Of course, he knew them because he'd dueled Weevil and watched Joey cream Rex, but those two didn't need to know that. He turned back to Joey and Tristan. "Let them go, guys. I doubt they stole the God cards."

Everyone's jaws dropped. "But—" The words died in Joey and Tristan's throats as Atem fixed them with a stern look and before they knew it, they'd dropped Rex and Weevil and the two pests were racing back up the slope.

"Atem, are you out of your mind?" exclaimed Tea. "You seriously believe Rex and Weevil didn't steal the God cards and you're letting them go?" Everyone was staring at him like he'd grown a second head.

Before Atem could respond, however, two screams echoed from the top of the slope. "These aren't the God cards, you dolt!" exclaimed Rex. The two slapped their hands over their mouths as the group below turned to stare at them.

"So they did take the God cards," said Duke angrily. In a flash, Joey and Tristan had scaled the slope and dragged the two thieves back down.

"Hold on guys." Yugi reached out a hand. "They just said those cards _weren't_ the God cards." His eyes widened in realization as he slowly rotated towards his brother. "_Atem_…"

"I saw them in the bushes earlier," replied Atem with a triumphant smirk. "And as I told you, I recognized them immediately. I also remembered what you told me about them breaking into your room trying to steal the God cards before we met up in Egypt." His smirk widened as he turned to Rex and Weevil. "The cards they grabbed, however, are Card of Sanctity, Pot of Greed, and Graceful Charity, right?"

Rex and Weevil gaped.

Rebecca gasped. "You switched them, didn't you? You got to the car first, and put the God cards somewhere they couldn't find them." She eyed him with a look of increased respect.

Atem reached into his pocked and whipped out the three God cards, fixing Rex and Weevil with a stern stare. "These cards are Yugi's. Not yours."

"Nice!" Mokuba exclaimed, pumping his fist in the air.

"You little…" Rex spluttered in outrage.

"Hand 'em over!" demanded Weevil as he and Rex charged toward Atem. Atem merely eyed at them in distaste and stepped nimbly to the side as Rex and Weevil leaped at him and missed, ending up in an undignified piled on the ground.

"We deserve those God cards. Not you losers!"

"Try sayin' that again!" said Joey, pounding his fists.

"There's an easy way to settle this." Everyone froze as Kaiba stepped up, scowling. "You two think you deserve the God cards." The two nodded vigorously. "Then prove it!" he ordered, snapping out his arm.

"What are you planning Kaiba?" asked Bakura.

Kaiba smirked. "Atem, hand Raptor and Underwood the God cards."

"What?" everyone exclaimed, staring at Kaiba as if he'd decided he was going to turn KaibaCorp into a candy and stuffed animal business and then give Joey his three Blue-Eyes.

"Hand them over Atem. Yugi will duel Raptor and Underwood while they have the God cards. If Yugi wins, he gets the cards back."

"Kaiba—" Atem protested.

Kaiba cut him with a hand slice through the air. "Since these two think they deserve the God cards, let's see them use them."

Atem glared as he handed Rex and Weevil the cards, but grabbed the Dark Magician and Dark Magician Girl from his own deck and pressed them into Yugi's hand. "Perhaps two old friends of mine can assist you," he whispered to a confused Yugi before joining Kaiba.

"Don't even think about runnin' off, ya numbskulls," Joey warned as he, Tristan, and Duke blocked off any escape routes.

Rex and Weevil cackled. They could practically smell their victory.

Atem glared. "You'd better know what you're doing Kaiba."

Kaiba smirked. "Come on, _Pharaoh_…" he whispered the last word. "Do you even have to worry?"

"What?"

"Atem." Kaiba swept his hand to the area Yugi, Rex, and Weevil were using to duel. "We're talking Yugi vs. Rex Raptor and Weevil Underwood."

"They have the Egyptian God Cards," Atem pointedly reminded the CEO.

"So did you." Kaiba smirked as Atem jerked back slightly, eyes widening. "You got all three God cards on the field and you're almost as much of an expert on them as I am. Yet Yugi still managed to take them down, and you followed them not too long after. You really think Yugi's going to lose to them?" He almost smiled as he glanced toward Yugi with a face Atem recognized from his and Yugi's duel against Leon after it was discovered that Leon was a von Schroeder. A look of confidence, faith in their abilities-and maybe a touch of pride in them.

Atem smirked in response as he turned his attention to the duel as the duelists drew their first cards. Kaiba was right. Yugi would do just fine.

* * *

><p>Everyone stared in disbelief. It was over, the Life Points dropping to zero. Yugi had sent both Slifer and Obelisk to the graveyard in two moves, using Rex's own monster and Brain control to take care of Slifer by slipping past one of Weevil traps. Silent Magician and Card of Sanctity had finished off Obelisk, and Rex and Weevil couldn't read the text to summon Ra.<p>

Rex and Weevil fell to the ground, trembling and temporally suffering from a loss of speech. How had they lost when they'd had the most powerful cards in the game? It wasn't possible!

Yugi stepped up to them. Despite their loss, Yugi believed that the two had put up a good fight. Atem joined him, picking up the cards that had scattered all over the sand until he found the God cards and returned them to Yugi.

"Great game, guys. You fought pretty well," said Yugi as Rex and Weevil slowly picked themselves up off the ground.

"We don't need your pity!" yelled Weevil.

"Chill out already, guys," said Joey glaring in distate. "This isn't the end of the world."

"Yeah guys. Just work on getting better," Yugi agreed.

"Yeah, we will get better. And what we need are those God cards!" exclaimed Rex as he and Weevil leaped at Yugi, grabbing for the cards.

Atem gasped, but before he even took a step, Kaiba grabbed the back of Yugi's jacket and yanked him backwards and out of reach.

"Kaiba?" asked Yugi, glancing up in confusion. Why would Kaiba save him?

Kaiba glared. "That's pathetic," he said. Rex and Weevil glared back. "Look at yourselves," Kaiba continued icily. "You couldn't beat Yugi even with the God cards and you still think you deserve them."

"We're regional champions! Those cards should be ours, and we're taking what we deserve," replied Rex.

"You mean you're stealing." Kaiba's eyes narrowed. "I don't think highly of thieves. And come on. You really think the God cards will make you top ranked duelists again? Yugi took you down even when you had them. I bet you two could have all the best cards in the game and still lose to Yugi. Just having good cards isn't enough. You have to know how to use them. And from the looks of it, you two can't handle anything even remotely close to a God." He scoffed. "As far as duelists go, you two are making Wheeler look like he's in _my_ league right now."

Joey spluttered before he realized he'd been both insulted and complimented and wasn't sure how he should feel.

Weevil and Rex stared in absolute disbelief.

"Now get out of here," Kaiba snarled.

Rex and Weevil slunk off.

* * *

><p>Well, what did you guys think? I'd like to know. And by the way, I should have the next chapter up sometime tomorrow. Please review.<p> 


	7. At the Beach Part 2

Here's chapter seven. I hope you like it!

Disclaimer: I don't own Yugioh

Chapter 7

"Man, that sure ruined the afternoon," grumbled Tristan as everyone sat around.

Joey nodded. Although everyone had breathed a sigh of relief after Rex and Weevil left, the whole display had left a sour taste in everyone's mouth, effectively killing the relaxed and fun-loving mood they'd basked in since the start of the afternoon. Everyone was either walking and kicking up sand attempting to play a board game only to throw the dice around in frustration.

"What do we do Atem?" Yugi asked as he and former king sat at the edge of the water and dipped their bare feet in it. "We can't let the day end like this."

Atem shrugged. "It started when Rex and Weevil tried to steal the God cards and Kaiba told them off. It wasn't, as you say, a pretty sight."

Yugi shuddered. "That was brutal." He felt sorry for Rex and Weevil for that, and also slightly guilty for being grateful that _he_ wasn't on the receiving end.

The two sat in silence, listening to the waves crash back into the water and seagulls cry in the distance, the wind blowing through the trees, Yugi trying to think of a way to fix the foul mood.

"Hey," said Yugi, shooting up as sudden inspiration struck him. "Why don't we duel?"

"What?" asked Atem, raising an eyebrow and joining him

"We'll duel. You and me." Yugi said, enthusiasm radiating from his whole body. "Just for fun, you know. And no God cards either. Come on, that'll cheer everyone up! Please." He folded his hands and gave Atem the puppy-dog eyes.

Atem stared. Then he grinned in anticipation. He and Yugi hadn't dueled in a while. "I'll get my Duel Disk."

Yugi smiled back and followed him to the car, unable to wait. As Atem pulled out his Duel Disk, Tea materialized behind them. "Hey guys. What are you doing?" she asked, cocking her head.

"Hey Tea," Yugi greeted.

"Hello Tea. Would you mind letting everyone know Yugi and I will be dueling in a few minutes?"

Tea gasped. "You guys are dueling?"

"Yeah, and without the God cards," replied Yugi.

"Without the God cards?" Tea frowned, a question on her lips.

"After what just happened, we'd rather not involve the Gods. Besides, Yugi and I have never dueled each other without the God cards in my deck, so it should be interesting to see what will happen." Atem grinned.

Tea stared for a moment before he face broke out in a wide smile. "All right!" she exclaimed, leaping into the air and racing back to the beach to spread the news.

Yugi and Atem arrived on the beach to the find the others crowding together, several of them bouncing on their toes.

"This is gonna be sweet," said Joey, rubbing his hands together and grinning.

Those who hadn't witnessed Yugi and Atem's first duel looked bemused.

"Is it true you guys aren't using the God cards?" asked Mokuba.

"That's right," Yugi confirmed, hefting his Duel Disk and placing his hand over his deck.

"Hmm," Kaiba grinned. "Maybe today wasn't such a waste of time after all." He ignored the several death glares thrown at him.

Atem activated his Duel Disk, drawing everyone's attention away from Kaiba.

"Ready Atem?"

"Ready Yugi!"

"Duel!"

* * *

><p>Everyone cheered as Atem's Life Points dropped to zero from Valkyrion's attack. Atem grinned and strode over to Yugi, exchanging a high five with him as everyone swarmed them with congratulations.<p>

The duel had been fierce, loaded with spells and strategies thought out so thoroughly that even Kaiba was left reeling. Despite the lack of Egyptian God card, the duel was fiercer than any other they'd seen or played, a Life Point difference of one hundred points more often than not. By the end stages, Yugi and Atem had been tied with fifty points, each with two face down cards and one monster on the field.

"That was awesome guys!" exclaimed Tristan.

"Absolutely remarkable!" cried Professor Hawkins. "I've never seen a duel that evenly matched in my life!"

Solomon chuckled. "Well, those're my grandsons," he said proudly, not noticing the quick flash of surprise on Atem's face.

"I knew Yugi would win," Rebecca proclaimed.

"I didn't Rebecca," said Yugi. "I almost didn't get out of Atem's last trap. And even then he had a backup."

"Because I knew I'd need it," Atem countered, smiling as Duke stepped up to congratulate him.

Yugi shot a triumphant grin towards Atem. Everyone's good mood had been restored.

Mission accomplished.

Joey nearly ran Tea over when Hidekazu and Momose set dinner on the picnic table and he realized that Professor Hawkins had brought his famous pasta in addition to the pizza that Solomon had ordered.

"Seriously, that was a really awesome duel!" complimented Duke as they sat down. "I hope it keeps getting better."

Tea laughed. "Knowing those two, it will. They're both awesome."

"Didn't Yugi win their first duel too?" asked Serenity.

"Yeah," answered Joey. "That why Atem's here with us and not stuck in the Puzzle anymore."

"It was unbelievable, Serenity," said Tristan. "You thought it was cool when Yugi destroyed Obelisk and Slifer when he beat Rex and Weevil? Well, Atem here managed to get all three God cards on the field at once, and Yugi managed to defeat all three of them in one move!"

Serenity gasped, eyes flickering between Yugi and Atem, asking for confirmation.

Atem nodded as grabbed another slice of pepperoni. "That's not all Serenity. He managed to defeat both my Dark Magicians and leave me defenseless on the last turn."

"You weren't defenseless at first," protested Yugi, taking a bite of his slice.

"No, I was. You had planned all along to stop me from using Monster Reborn to bring back an Egyptian God. I was defenseless after you defeated my Magicians; I just didn't know it yet."

"How did Yugi manage to stop you from bringing back an Egyptian God?" asked Serenity, eyes wide.

"He used a card called Gold Sarcophagus," replied Atem, grabbing another slice of cheese pizza. "He put one magic card inside a gold box, and if I happened to use the same card, the box would negate that card's effect."

"Whoa," said Rebecca, sitting down beside just in time to hear how Yugi had defeated Atem the first time. "I might have to modify my deck to stand a chance the next time I duel you."

"Yeah, me too," said Joey.

"Please, like you're ever going to beat him."

"Hey!" Joey growled. "Did you forget who took down Valon when you and Duke together couldn't pull it off? And he used the Orichalcos on me, not you."

"How the heck did you even pull that off?" asked Duke.

Joey shrugged. "I realized after he destroyed my Rocket Hermos Cannon that the only way I could win was to fight his armor with my own armor. Wasn't easy, but I did it, using my Aura Armor card, and Red-Eyes Transmigration for a while. I finished him off by using Grave Robber to steal his Big Bang Blow and combining it with Hermos."

"I thought he beat Hermos," said Duke in confusion.

"He did," Joey confirmed. "But I used Take One Chance to get it back on the field."

"Luck again?" said Kaiba derisively.

Joey growled. "Hey, my soul was on the line and I couldn't draw another card. I didn't exactly have anything to lose by trying it. And it paid off." He grinned.

"Hey guys, it's time to light the fire!" Tea called, breaking up the argument.

"Already?" asked Joey, glancing around. The sun had mostly set and a couple stars had started twinkling on the edge of the opposite horizon. "Man, time sure flew by," he said as he held a lighter to the giant pile of wood and set it ablaze.

He licked his lips in anticipation as everybody pulled their camp chairs closer to the fire and Tristan brought out the marshmallows. "All right!" he exclaimed as he stuck his first two marshmallows into the fire. "This is more like it."

Tea grinned as she glanced at everyone. Mokuba roasted three at a time and tried to convince Kaiba to eat them too. Kaiba was stoically refusing. Joey and Tristan were setting their marshmallows on fire. Bakura and Duke stuck their marshmallows close the bottom of the fire, where it was hottest while Yugi and Atem held theirs in the upper middle of the flames before quickly yanking them out and repeating the process.

It was nice to be able to enjoy this now, Tea thought. It was nice to just kick back and relax. No crazy adventures, no weird magic trying to steal or banish their soul, no more brainwashing, no more magically weird incidents she didn't understand...

She froze as a thought struck her. "Hey Atem?"

"Hmm?" he asked, freezing in the act of putting a marshmallow on his stick and focusing on her.

"I've been meaning to ask you something for a while. When we went to your past, you and Bobasa were the only ones who could see us. But this other girl could too." She growled as she tried to remember. "What was her name. Mena? Mina?"

Atem's eyes widened in recognition. "Mana?"

Tea snapped her fingers. "That's it! Mana. Anyway, do you know why she could see us?"

Atem frowned, gripping his chin as he pondered the question. After a minute, he shrugged and stuck his marshmallow in the fire. "Your guess is as good as mine Tea."

"Mana mentioned she was a friend of yours," Yugi piped up, recalling more of his conversation with the young magician.

The former king smiled at the memories. "Yes, since we were very young."

"Any others?" asked Joey, not noticing is marshmallow burning and starting to fall off the stick.

"One other. Mahad."

"What were they like?"

Atem smiled. "Mana loved pulling pranks on everyone, especially me, and was quite skilled at coaxing a laugh from almost anyone. Mahad was responsible for looking after me and tended to follow the rules, but he could also have fun if he wished."

"Such as?" Bakura prodded.

The former Pharaoh chuckled. "One time, Mana and I were practicing magic in a food storage room. She levitated a basket full of rotted fruit, but couldn't figure out how to put it back on the ground. She eventually managed to release her spell." He shook his head. "Unfortunately, the basket was upside down and directly over my head when she did."

Jaws dropped before laughter roared around the fire at the image of a young, smaller version of the Pharaoh covered with a bunch of rotted fruit.

"What happened then?" asked Tristan, wiping his eyes.

"I was a ten year old prince with a rather large ego Tristan. What do you think happened?" Atem smirked. "And Mana had fighting spirit as well."

"No way!" Joey exclaimed. "You, involved in a food fight?" At Atem's confirming nod, Joey burst out in laughter, joined by everyone else. "Oh man, that is rich."

Atem laughed as well. "After a while, Mahad came in."

"What did he do?" asked Yugi.

"He scolded us since we hadn't told anyone where we would be and for starting a food fight." Atem grinned. "Then he whipped out two pieces of fruit-which he'd somehow hidden behind his back-and chucked them at us, pegging both me and Mana in the middle of our foreheads."

Laughter once again broke out among the audience, and Mokuba actually rolled out of his chair and hit the ground, pounding his fist on the sand. "Food fight back on again after that." Tea asked.

"No Tea. It was an all out war after that. I still don't know if the servants managed to get all the stains out of our clothes or if they just threw them away and gave us new ones." Chuckles and snickers echoed around the campsite.

"Did we ever meet him?" asked Yugi once everyone had calmed down. "Or see him, I guess, since he probably couldn't see us."

"No, I doubt-Hold on!" Atem froze. "You did meet him!"

"We did?" asked Tristan, scrunching his face.

Atem didn't answer. Instead, he whipped out his deck and shuffled through it before pulling out a card and showing it to them.

"The Dark Magician?" Joey asked. "What's that about?"

"Wait a minute." Tea gasped. "When we were flying to help Atem and Yugi summoned the Dark Magician to fight Zorc's flying zombie skeletons, the Dark Magician's skin was tanned and he had brown hair, and he told us to go help the Pharaoh." Her eyes shot to Atem. "Are you saying...?"

Atem nodded. "After Bakura-" his eyes shot to the white haired teen. "The Thief King," he amended himself, "attacked the palace, Mahad lured him the training ground for magicians to try to defeat him. To accomplish that, he merged himself with his ka- a duel monster spirit that lived inside him. Unfortunately, the Thief King managed to escape and steal Mahad's Millennium Item while Mahad's soul was sealed in a tablet."

The group stared. "Oh man," said Joey. "That's rough."

Atem nodded. "He said he didn't once he didn't care because then he could always be there to help me whenever I called on him. His ka was called the Illusion Magician. When he merged with it, he became known as Mahad the Dark Magician."

"Whoa," Yugi breathed.

"What about the Dark Magician Girl?" asked Tristan. "She came to help us when we fighting Zorc."

"Dark Magician Girl was Mana's ka," Atem explained. "Everyone had a ka, but training was required to summon it. Mana managed to summon hers when we fought the Thief King at Kul Elna and she summoned it later to help you against Zorc. Interestingly enough," he added. "Mana was Mahad's apprentice, and Dark Magician Girl is Dark Magician's apprentice in Duel Monsters."

"Seriously?" asked Joey, eyes wide. "Talk about weird. But no wonder you like those two cards so much. They were yer best friends back in Egypt."

Yugi's eyes widened in recognition. _So that's what he meant when he said two old friends of his could help me in my duel against Rex and Weevil_.

"You mentioned Mahad owned a Millennium Item," said Hidekazu, another part of the conversation hitting him.

"Yes. In the court, there were six people known as Guardians, and each possessed a Millennium Item while the Pharaoh, me, held the Millennium Puzzle. Mahad was one of my guardians."

"Which Item did he hold?" asked Momose.

"The Millennium Ring." At the others' uneasy looks, he asked, "Do you wish to know what the irony is?"

"What's that?" asked Tea.

"The rings main use was detecting criminals and other evil in Egypt."

"Are you serious?" asked Tristan with a _what-the-heck_ look on his face. At Atem's nod, he shook his head. "You're right, that is some irony."

"Who held the other Items?" asked Professor Hawkins.

"There was the dude who looked like Kaiba. He had the Rod," Joey remembered. "What was that guys name anyway?"

"Seto," Atem deadpanned.

Joey stared. "You serious?"

Atem nodded.

"There was another guy we saw with the dude who looked like Kaiba," said Tristan, noting Kaiba's glare and deciding to steer the conversation from Kaiba's past life. "He had the Key."

"Shada." Atem realized.

"Shadi?" Tristan asked incredulously.

"No, Sha_da_," Atem corrected.

"Oh, who else?"

"A man named Karim held the Millennium Scales. You probably would have seen him when they found me by the Nile. A woman named Isis held the Necklace, and she greatly resembled Ishizu," he said as he reached into a box and pulled out a graham cracker.

"That leaves just the Eye," said Joey, counting on his fingers. "Who wore that?"

Atem froze, hands clenching into fists.

CRACK!

Everyone started as the graham cracker that Atem had been holding split in two and fell the ground. "His name was Aknadin," Atem replied tersely.

Tristan cringed. "Either something bad happened to this guy or he was a total creep."

"That's not true Tristan. Aknadin was known as a fair and just man who showed mercy to even the worst of criminals."

"Then what's the deal?" asked Joey, waving his hands.

"Joey!" Tea scolded.

"It's all right Tea." Atem raised his hand. "Though Aknadin was a good man, he'd done something terrible in the past in an attempt to help bring peace to Egypt. Not long after Mahad's soul was sealed in the tablet, the Thief King attacked Aknadin in revenge. But instead of killing him, he inserted a piece of his soul within the Millennium Eye." Atem sighed. "Which brought Aknadin's dark side to the surface."

"Oh no," Tea groaned. Everyone guessed where this was heading.

"He eventually helped the Thief King gather all the Items and summon Zorc to our world. He was eventually defeated along with Zorc, but the cost was dear to one of the guardians."

Silence reigned after that. Clearly there was more to the story, but no one wanted to push Atem for more details.

"I'm sorry," Yugi ventured.

Atem started. Then he glanced to the side. "You should know, Aknadin was the younger twin brother of my father."

Yugi gasped. "He was your _uncle_?!" No wonder Atem was so touchy about him.

Atem nodded.

"Was there anyone else on the court?" Solomon asked, hoping to find a happier topic.

It worked. Atem's dark look transformed to a small smile. "There was one other. My vizier, Shimon."

"What was he like?" To Solomon's surprise, Atem laughed at his question.

"I believe he was you in a past life."

"Really?" The old man's eyes widened.

Atem nodded, his smile growing wider. "Yes. You look exactly the same except he was tan and wore the clothing of Egyptian nobility. Otherwise, I can't tell the difference between you."

Solomon gaped, then turned to Professor Hawkins and excitedly discussed with him what he might have done in his past life to help the Pharaoh fight the ultimate evil. Atem grinned, making a note to wait awhile before telling Solomon that his ka was Exodia.

A few hours later, the fire died down and everyone made their way home. Kaiba and Mokuba took off first, followed by Joey and his mother and sister. Duke gave Tea a ride home while Bakura went with Tristan. Professor Hawkins took Rebecca in his car while Solomon took Yugi and Atem, along with Hidekazu and Momose (who'd caught a ride with Mrs. Wheeler on the way up).

Once they reached home and climbed into bed, Atem admitted to himself that this time, Yugi's surprise hadn't been so bad.

Not that he wasn't going to keep his guard up the next time Yugi planned one.

* * *

><p>Interesting fact: these two chapters are the whole reason this story even exists. It has undergone major editing, but seeing Atem at the beach with his friends and having fun started off this whole story.<p>

I realized that my inclusion of Joey's mother might have been a problem since she didn't know much of what went on, so everyone discussing things around the campfire could be a problem. But then I decided that Serenity talked to her mother about what happened and Joey caught her up on everything. That's going to be the case here. Just thought I'd mention it.

Also, either my computer or my flash drive decided to be wonky and for some reason, I can't open the word document containing this story. I managed to get some of this chapter on another format, but only a part of it, and I had to retype over half of what you just read. I also lost next week's chapter, but I remember enough of it to where it shouldn't be a problem to retype. Just letting you know in case you notice any mistakes in this.

Anyway, enough of me rambling. I hope you liked this chapter. Please review.


	8. Sick

Okay, I worked a few hours on this chapter to retype it after I lost it. The flash drive, as I mentioned last chapter, did something wonky and and I lost the big document that held this whole story. Luckily, I remembered most of it, so I got it typed up and hopefully up to my usual standards. But I wanted to get it posted today, and I procrastinated and got distracted a lot.

This is the chapter I really wanted to type and post, and I really hope you guys like it.

Disclaimer: I don't own Yugioh

Chapter 8

"Hey Mom, we're home!" Yugi called as he swung the door open.

"Hello Yugi. Hello Atem," Momose greeted as the elder shut the door. "How was school?"

"All right. There's a flu going around, so a lot of the kids were home sick."

Momose grimaced. She'd heard from neighbors that this year's flu was a particularly nasty one. "I hope you two don't catch it."

"Slim chance of that happening."

"Well, head on up to your room and finish your homework. I'll call you when dinner's ready."

"Yes Mom," said Yugi as he hauled his lately very heavy backpack up the stairs, Atem hot on his heels.

It was about a quarter of the way through the year, and apparently the teachers had decided that meant the workload needed to be heated up to prepare students for the finals early because they were, apparently, falling behind. Their English teacher had assigned them two Shakespeare plays to read in the next six weeks, and then make comparisons between the two. The chemistry teacher had decided that having quizzes and worksheets for six consecutive weeks would help the students grasp the concepts he was teaching. Not to mention the huge history project-researching a specific country and then writing a ten page paper on it.

And that was just the tip of the iceberg. Atem and Yugi had more than once banged their heads against the desks when the chemistry teacher had announced another quiz. Atem was just thankful that Bakura had taught him over the summer. Otherwise, he would have been dead meat. He couldn't even use his own knowledge in the history project because there were no history books with that information in them and the teacher would want to know where he got the ideas and he couldn't very well tell him that he actually lived back then, and he doubted Solomon's history as an archaeologist would cover all the details.

"Long day wasn't it?" Yugi asked, startling Atem out of his thoughts and nearly send him rolling off the bed.

He blushed. "Yes, sorry. I know I've been rather irritable lately." With all these assingments, a headache seemed to have rented a room and his head and, like a stubborn tenant, refused to take a hint and leave.

"You seem really tired too." Yugi's eyebrows furrowed.

"I have felt tired recently," Atem confessed. "Today is just slightly worse than the others. I'm not sure why," Atem replied.

Yugi shrugged. "Personally, I think it's just the midterm stress, plus all these projects. This is kind of the time of year where we realize that we're not going to have a vacation for a really long time, and boredom and frustration kind of take over the whole school."

"I noticed that." Atem nodded. A lot of kids, before the flu set in, had started to get really snappy at school and nobody had missed the new dents in a few lockers that were too small to have come from a bully smashing a body into a locker. The new dents reminded Yugi and Atem of Joey's locker when the thing wouldn't open for him.

After a few hours, Yugi was still working on a portion of his history project while Atem was reading, or trying to read _Hamlet_, which was one of the two plays he was assigned along with _Othello_. After two minutes of squinting and reading the same page five times over, he dropped the book on the desk and massaged his temples. "You all right?" Yugi asked in concern.

"I'm fine. Except for the fact that I can't figure out what this Hamlet is even trying to say. If he's going to avenge his father, why doesn't he just do it already instead of making all these speeches no one can understand?"

Yugi groaned. "Tell me about it. Bakura's the only one I know in class who can make heads or tails of anything written by that guy. Too bad he was sick today."

Atem nodded.

"Well, maybe I can head downstairs and ask Mom. She was an English major in college." Yugi offered.

Atem stiffened. "Thanks Yugi. But I'll be fine."

He'd said that a little too quickly. Yugi sighed. Even after all these months, Atem still struggled with issue of calling Hidekazu and Momose his parents, and while he would occasionally go to them for advice, he usually hesitated to do it. Yugi also sensed uncomfortable feelings whenever he was referred to as their son. With Solomon he didn't mind being called his grandson or Yugi his brother.

"Still having problems with that aren't you?" Yugi asked, compassion and sympathy in his voice, inviting Atem to talk about it if he wished, but also giving him the option to refuse.

Atem studied the floor. "I'm sorry Yugi." The tension emanating from him was so thick Yugi could cut it with a knife.

"It's okay," Yugi reassured him. "If you want to talk about it…?"

Atem smild reluctantly, a touch of remorse in his gaze."Not right now Yugi. But thank you anyway."

Yugi nodded. "Whenever you're ready."

Atem blew out a gust of air. "Thank you."

"Anytime." Yugi's reassuring smile turned to a frown. "Are you all right?" he asked. "You look a little pale."

"I'm fine Yugi." Atem narrowed his eyes in concern. "Are _you_ all right? You look paler than usual."

"No I feel fine. I-" Yugi gasped, then buried his face in his hands. "Oh no, I bet we both caught that flu."

Atem froze. "Are you sure. We both just said that we feel fine."

"Trust me. Getting pale or red is one of the first signs that we're sick." Yugi groaned. "I can tell you right now that neither of us is going to get much sleep tonight. And we're probably going to meet dinner twice tonight."

Atem grimaced. He didn't often get sick back in Egypt, but the couple times he had, it had been absolutely miserable, confined to bed with a high fever for a week. "How long does this flu last?"

Yugi sighed. "Thankfully, it usually only lasts a couple days. I'd better go let Mom know." He raced downstairs.

Atem sighed as well once Yugi left. Just great. Weeks of headache inducing assignments and now a flu came to top it off. Now he could see why Yugi and Tea had told him that the actual first weeks of school after summer and winter break were the worst, and not the finals as Joey had initially led him to believe. For the work at finals, once it was done, it was done for a few weeks. As for the flu, if the memories he'd gleaned from Yugi years ago were true, the flu, while not usually long lasting, made its victim miserable. He also knew that Momose would probably make them something that would hopefully not upset their stomachs too badly.

A few minutes later, Yugi called Atem down for dinner. Hidekazu had also just gotten home.

As Atem had predicted, two bowls of chicken noodle soup sat on the table for Yugi and Atem, along with bowls of applesauce and a plate with saltine crackers on them.

"Are you two feeling all right?" Momose asked, feeling their foreheads with the back of her wrist.

"I feel fine," Atem assured, feeling uncomfortable with her actions, but not wanting to offend her by brushing it aside.

"It always feels that way before the flu actually sets in," said Hidekazu. "Trust me, I know from experience."

"Well, hopefully you'll be able to keep this down." Momose gestured to the soup. "But I still want both of you to keep a bucket by your beds tonight in case you don't think you can make it to the bathroom in time, all right."

"All right," the two spikey-haired teens agreed as they picked up their spoons.

* * *

><p>Later that night, Yugi shot up straight in bed, his stomach twisting and this throat and esophagus feeling like something was taking leaps up it to certain points. He sprang out of bed and dashed into the bathroom, making it to the toilet just in time as he hurled his dinner into the bowl, the bitter tasted filling his entire mouth and the foul smell penetrating his nostrils. He heaved three more times, spewing up more and more stomach contents before he finally stopped.<p>

He grabbed a cup and filled it was water. He swished the water around his mouth to get rid of as much of the nasty taste as he could before heading back to bed, laying down with a miserable sigh, and not only for himself. He was sure he wouldn't have to wait too long.

He was right. Not three minutes later, Atem shot out of bed and bolted towards the bathroom, and the sound of retching reached his ears as the former Pharaoh lost his dinner to the toilet as well.

He looked absolutely miserable as he returned, shoulders drooping and frowning in distaste as if he still hadn't managed to get rid of the taste. The former Pharaoh laid back down on his bed, only to sit right back up again and lean against the wall, groaning.

"No fun, is it?" Yugi asked, weariness in his voice. He hated the flu.

Atem just sighed. "We're not getting back to sleep, are we?"

"No, we're not. We can lie down though." Yugi eyed him in tired curiosity.

"I tried Yugi. My stomach had other ideas. It'll throw a fit again if I try."

Yugi grimaced in sympathy. Now that was really not fun.

They were in for a long night.

* * *

><p>Yugi strolled down the sidewalk as he neared the game shop, reveling in the sunny day outside. His body had shaken off the flu three days ago, and he was rejoicing in the feeling of being healthy again.<p>

His joy was tempered, though, when he reached his house. Despite his assurances that the flu was only a one or two day thing, Atem was still just as sick as before, if not sicker. The flu hadn't gone away, and Yugi had insisted on staying home from school to help look after him, since it was Friday when he got better and it had been almost the weekend anyway. His parents had agreed.

Entering the living room, he came across Atem lying on the couch. "How are you doing?" he asked, his voice soft.

Atem groaned. "I thought you said the flu didn't last long."

Yugi wasn't offended. Atem had been really sick for awhile, and it was a legitimate question. "It usually doesn't. I can't figure out why it's sticking with you. Maybe it likes you," he teased gently.

Atem reluctantly chuckled, but unfortunately that degenerated into a coughing fit. Yugi could only watch helplessly as Atem sought to get control over himself, but it was a full minute before it stopped.

"He looks terrible," Yugi heard Momose whisper from behind the couch.

Hidekazu strode in from the kitchen. "If he's not any better by tomorrow, we'll call a doctor."

"All right," Yugi agreed as he watched Atem shiver.

Nobody had the heart to make him go upstairs to his room later that night.

* * *

><p>The next morning, Yugi woke up and leaped down the stairs to check on Atem. To his dismay, the former Pharaoh looked paler than before, and when he checked his temperature, the thermometer said a hundred and three.<p>

On seeing the number, Yugi yanked the phone off its handle and dialed the family physician and explained the situation. The physician promised to be there in an hour at most.

After Yugi hung up, he grabbed a glass and filled it with water. He raced into the living room, being careful not to spill and offered it to Atem. But the elder refused.

"Thank you Yugi. But I don't think I could keep it down."

Hidekazu and Momose strode into the room a few minutes later. They paled and Hidekazu raced for the phone.

"No need Dad. I called the physician already. It shouldn't take him too long to get here." Yugi said, gripping their hands.

Thankfully, the physician arrived twenty minutes later. He took Atem's vitals and blood pressure, asking the former spirit what his symptoms were, and then confirming it with Yugi, Hidekazu, and Momose. Yugi's heart sank as they were listed: fever, sweating, chills which made him shake, a nasty cough with phlegm, chest pain, short breath, fatigue, nausea, and a headache.

The physician sighed. "Sounds like he's got a bad case of pneumonia."

"Is it bad?" Hidekazu asked, wringing his hands.

The physician shook his head. "He'll be miserable for a while, but it's not life threatening." He tossed a plastic bottle of pills to Hidekazu. "When Yugi described Atem's symptoms over the phone, it sounded a lot like pneumonia. Having the flu can make a person more susceptible to it. Give him one of those pills every eight hours for two weeks or until the symptoms completely disappear. I'll check on him again in ten days."

"Thank you," said Momose as the physician took his leave. Then she turned her attention to Atem.

It took a bit of coaxing, but they managed to convince Atem to take the pill and drink a little water to help swallow it down. He fell into a restless sleep almost right away.

"I don't think he slept at all last night." Yugi eyed him, sympathy overflowing from his eyes.

"He'd probably be more comfortable in his room." Momose glanced to him and to the stairs.

Yugi jerked back slightly. "Maybe Mom, but I don't think he's in any shape to walk."

"Who said anything about walking?" Hidekazu asked as he bent over Atem and scooped him up, keeping the blanket over him and carrying him upstairs. Yugi followed with a sense of wonder. He'd never seen anyone carry Atem, much less carry him bridal style, and yet now it was happening. It was incredibly surreal.

* * *

><p>Atem woke up, the headache only slightly more bearable. Everything else felt the same, he thought as he cracked his eyes open. He frowned in confusion. This wasn't the living room; it was his bedroom. How did he get here?"<p>

"Hey," a quiet voice said next to him.

His eyes scanned the room and found Yugi sitting at the foot of his bed. "How are you feeling?" the smaller boy asked.

"Slightly better." Atem rasped, sensing the beginning of a coughing fit coming. "Yugi, how did I get here? I remember falling asleep on the couch."

Yugi smiled gently. "Dad carried you up here. He and Mom thought it would be more comfortable for you here."

Hidekazu had carried him up here. A rush of gratitude and uneasiness flashed through his mind. Then he noticed Yugi's uneasy expression. "Are you all right?"

"I'm really sorry Atem." Yugi grimaced, and struggled to spit out his next words. But it's Monday and Mom and Dad won't let me miss anymore school-"

"Don't worry about it Yugi," Atem assured him, managing to put a bit of sternness into his voice to make sure Yugi wouldn't argue.

"Are you sure?" Yugi asked, hesitantly lifting his backpack.

Atem grinned slightly and waved him off, as if to say _go, go, I'll be fine…_

Yugi nodded and smiled slightly in return as he left the room, promising to give him any missing assignments and to try to get the gang to come over as Atem drifted back to sleep.

* * *

><p>Atem had had a lot of strange visions in his time.<p>

He'd found himself back in his past from his duel with Kaiba, seen himself dueling Joey through the Necklace, and had seen visions (albeit distorted) of his past in that duel with Dartz.

This one was new however. He was standing in a vast plain, tall grasses as far as the eye could see billowing in the slight breeze. A small log cabin with smoke rising out of the chimney stood to his left, and the sky was blue and cloudless.

To his right, a burst of laughter echoed through the air as two twelve-year-old children, a boy and a girl raced up the hill he was standing on. To Atem's shock, they raced right through him and continued on their way.

"What-"

"They cannot see you."

Atem froze. The voice was so familiar, and one he hadn't thought to hear again for a long time. He slowly turned around and came face-to-face with a beautiful young woman with black hair tinged with ruby, and gold bangs, though her hair didn't stick up. He knew that gentle and compassionate smile anywhere.

"Mother?" he asked, his voice trembling.

The former queen of Egypt beamed and held out her arms, allowing Atem to fall into them and embrace him. "It's been so long since I've seen you, my child." She stepped back to scan him. "You look different than before." She smiled.

Atem glanced down and realized he was still in his modern day clothes. "I-"

The queen shushed him, gently gripping his chin and pulling it up to make him face her. "You are my son, Atem, regardless of how you look."

Atem nodded. "Where am I?"

His mother smiled. "You are in a place in the Afterlife, my son. No, you are not dead," she answered his shocked expression. "You are merely here for a visit."

Atem frowned, thinking. People weren't brought to the afterlife for just a visit. They were supposed to learn something, and surely his mother knew that. "What I need to learn…does it have something to do with those two children." He gestured to the boy and girl who were still running around the hill.

The wife of Aknamkanon merely smiled and directed his attention back to the boy and girl as two men and two women, all adults, emerged from the house. "Kids!" one of the women called. "It's time to come in."

"Okay Mom!" the girl replied. She turned to the other woman. "Do you need any help with dinner Mom?"

"Did she-?" asked Atem in confusion.

"When those two children were newly born," the queen explained, "their parents had recently run into financial difficulties and lost everything. They did not feel they could take care of the children as they needed. So they left the two on the doorstep of another couple who were well known in their neighborhood for kindness and compassion. Indeed, that couple raised the children as if they were their own.

"Overtime, the two children were told they were adopted, and they wanted to find their birth parents. By a stroke of luck, they managed to find them. The birth parents had fixed their financial difficulties by then, but they felt that coming for the boy and girl would merely bring unwanted complications into the children's lives, and they thought the children were happy where they were. Once the children tracked the birth parents down, they talked and the children learned why the birth parents had given them up. All six of them agreed to work on a relationship, and now, in the afterlife, the children refer to both sets of parents as "Mom and Dad."

Atem's eyebrows rose. "This is what I'm supposed to learn." He would have to be blind not see the lesson here.

"We have seen your struggles in world of the living Atem. Both before and after the items were sealed away the final time. We've seen how happy you are, but we also see the one obstacle hindering you."

Atem didn't bother to deny it. "When Yugi first asked Hidekazu and Momose Muto to treat me like another son, I was honored, and I wanted to accept it. I had no memories of you, so having parental figures was, as they say, a dream come true. But once I regained my memories of you, and all you've done to protect me, especially Father…" He shook his head. "With Solomon, it's easy. I never knew either of my grandfathers, and he knew about my existence about as long as Yugi, and he's always treated me like his grandson whenever I took over. But with Yugi's parents…" He swiped his hands across his forehead. "They've done much for me as well, and I'm honored that they've welcomed me into their lives and treated me like their son, but I remember you and Father…" He exhaled, hanging his head. It was just so confusing at times.

His mother had remained silent as Atem laid his emotions before her, never interrupting until she was sure he was done, something her son had always loved her for. "Tell me Atem, would you love us any less if you called Hidekazu and Momose your parents?"

Atem's head shot up. "Of course not!" he exclaimed. "I could never love you any less."

She smiled. "Atem, you saw how those two children interacted with the adults. Just because one couple are their birth parents and the other adopted, or because one couple raised them from childhood while they didn't meet the other until reaching the age of eleven, doesn't mean they love either couple more than the other. Wanting to call Hidekazu and Momose your parents in the modern time is not wrong, and you would not be betraying us by doing so. You want to, right?"

Atem hesitantly nodded. "They treat me like a son, and they're there when I need them. I love them, and Yugi says they love me."

"I think they do." The queen gripped her son's shoulder. "We want you to be happy Atem, and you will not hurt us by calling Hidekazu and Momose your parents. All it means is that you have two sets of them. And." She grinned. "I'm glad it is them. They're good people."

"I agree," a deep baritone voice said behind them.

Atem whirled around. "Father?"

Aknamkanon grinned and embraced his son. "I apologize for not being here earlier. The plan was for both me and your mother to talk to you about this, but I got distracted with Aknadin. I'm working on helping him fix things with the rest of the court for the last two thousand years. It took three thousand just to work out everything between him and me. Now we're working on the rest." He shook his head. "In any case, you're mother is right. It's all right, my boy."

It was simple, and it was all Atem needed. "Give my regards to everyone," he called as the plains and his parents disappeared.

* * *

><p>Atem slowly cracked his eyes open. To his surprise, his nausea had gone down, and his chest didn't ache as much.<p>

"Atem?" a gentle feminine voice asked. His vision focused on Momose as she sat on the edge of the bed, holding a cool rag to his head. Hidekazu was right behind, watching in concern.

A quick glance at the clock told him it was around noon, and he'd fallen asleep around eight-thirty. Had they been there the whole time? If they had, he definitely owed them a major thank you.

"How are you feeling?" asked Hidekazu, slipping around Momose to sit on the bed beside her.

"Better than before," he replied. "I don't feel as nauseous anymore."

Momose sighed in relief. "That's good. And your fever's gone down as well, so it looks like you're on the mend."

Atem smiled, then glanced down in thought.

"Are you all right Atem? Is something wrong?"

"No, nothing's wrong." Atem assured. "But there is something I need to talk to you about."

* * *

><p>Yugi yanked open the door of the game shop and raced upstairs. He'd been concerned for Atem all day, which in turn distracted him from school, eliciting more than one reprimand from the teachers. At least Joey and the others had agreed to drop by in a couple hours to see Atem, Joey scolding Yugi for not phoning them over the weekend.<p>

The smaller duelist raced into the bedroom only to find Momose there fiddling with Atem's covers. Atem was nowhere in sight. "Hey Mom, where's Atem?"

"Oh," Momose started. "Sorry Yugi, you startled me. Atem's with your father in the bathroom. Your father filled the bathroom up with steam, figured it would help Atem with his cough."

Yugi nodded. "How's he doing?"

"Well, the antibiotics finally kicked in. He's not as nauseous and his chest doesn't hurt as much, according to him. Last I checked, his temperature was one hundred and one, so it's going down."

"That's good." Yugi sighed in relief.

Just then, Hidekazu strolled into the bedroom, supporting and guiding an exhausted looking Atem to the bed. Once there, Atem practically collapsed onto the bed.

"That help at all?" Hidekazu asked, his voice hopeful.

"Yes," Atem replied. "It did. Thank you Father."

Yugi froze, eyes widening and his jaw falling halfway to his knees.

"That's good. All right Atem, stay in bed," Momose ordered. "When it's time for dinner, we'll bring it up here, but no leaving the room, or you could have a relapse."

"Yes Mother." Atem nodded.

Momose nodded her head back as she and Hidekazu left the room to give Yugi some time with Atem.

"You actually called them Mother and Father," Yugi breathed.

Atem nodded. "While you were gone, I saw my parents in a vision." He told Yugi about the entire experience, to the younger boy's amazement.

"I talked with your parents right after that." Atem wore a sheepish look. "It seems they were already aware my difficulty in calling them my parents and decided to let me work out my issues on my own. I told them my reasons then." He smiled at Yugi. "They even said I didn't have to call them Mother and Father if I felt uncomfortable with it. But it's all right; I can now."

"And you want to. You've wanted to for a long time haven't you? And now you can." Yugi grinned, a knowing glint in his eyes.

Atem nodded, feeling more at peace than ever before.

Yugi, for his part, could only smile. For so long it felt like this issue kept Atem from truly feeling like he belonged here, in this world and with Yugi's family. Now though, It felt the final barrier had been torn down and tossed away, making Atem truly part of the family now. It wasn't just Yugi's family now; it was their family. And neither of them could be happier about it.

* * *

><p>One quick note, I found the pneumonia symptoms on a website. Do not use my story as a reference for it though, make sure you do your own research on that disease if you want to know more about it..<p>

Also, I'm really glad I got this posted. I still have to type Chapter 9, and after that, unless I come with some more ideas, this story's going to be labeled as complete. If anyone has any ideas, please feel free to PM me or leave those ideas in a review. I don't really watch any of the sequel series, so I might not be able to type anything concerning them. But I'm open to any suggestions.

And now, what do think of this chapter? I'd like to know what you like, what you don't like, anything else. Please review.


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